Heaven Present Day
Crowley was angry, and Aziraphale was hurt and confused.
"We need to see that last day of the war thing." Crowley growled. "I need to know what we did. I don't remember at all. Do you?"
"No, I only remember something like running with my flaming sword, but that's all," Aziraphale said, shaking.
Crowley barked into the air, "Show us the war's final battle with us in it, the classified one."
A new image flickered on the screen, but it wasn't the Great War; instead, it was Gabriel dressed in the same clothing Aziraphale had given him to wear when he was being cared for in the bookshop.
"Hi, you're probably surprised to see me, but it was the only way I could smuggle your memories back to you without anyone noticing. I don't have much time. Everyone is still in your bookshop arguing about us, so I'll make this quick. Go together to the place outside of time to retrieve your memories. That's where they're hidden. Aziraphale, thank you for taking care of me. Oh, and Crowley, thanks for the hot chocolate." A starry-eyed demon came into the frame, clinging to Gabriel's hand, and waved to them. The video closed, and both a demon and an Angel gaped at one another in dismay. "Well, that was unlikely," said Aziraphale.
Crowley turned and held his hand out. "Are you ready?" Aziraphale patted Crowley's lapel and nodded, taking Crowley's hand in his. The demon growled with all the pent-up anger of 6,000 lost years, and a blinding white light surrounded them for a moment. They were in the desert outside of time. Then they weren't.
The Place Outside of Time
(Present Day?)
They were on a wall teetering between an endless sand and Eden.
"Crowley, we're in the Garden," said Aziraphale, slightly astonished.
"Yes, looks like it." The demon said as he scratched his neck, slightly confused.
"Aziraphale, where would you hide something you were trying to keep safely hidden in Eden?"
A shocked Angel almost fell from the wall as the reality of what had happened hit him. "The Apple tree!" He exclaimed. They made me guard it from the humans, and Angels never eat."
"Never Angel?" Crowley smiled wickedly.
Aziraphale blushed. "A certain demon had not yet introduced me to gastronomic pleasure." He replied saucily.
"A huge mistake on my part. Let me make up for it. Can a simple serpent tempt you to a bite of forbidden fruit?"
"Indeed, you can." declared the Angel, growing increasingly excited.
They made their way to the Tree of Life, and Crowley stood beneath the canopy of branches, plucked a perfect red apple dangling above his head, and handed it to the Angel. "After you."
Aziraphale grasped the fruit in his palm but snapped a second apple from the branches and handed it to Crowley. "Together." He said.
The Angel looked at Crowley, and the demon looked at Aziraphale. Looks that spanned all the millennia apart, and they each bit deeply into the most forbidden thing in all of creation.
Suddenly, a rush of time, space, and forgotten self flooded their minds like great waves washing over their consciousness. And the Angel of the Eastern Gate and The Serpent fell together into memory.
Heaven During the Beginning
Memory 1
A peaceful park-like setting with a crystal pond stretched out before them. "So, what are you working on today?" said the Angel that would be Crowley.
"Well, it's a new thing called a waterfowl," Aziraphale replied nervously.
"Oh, look at him duck down under the water like that. How clever he is. The humans will think he's ducky cause he's so cute," Crowley cooed.
Aziraphale was overjoyed. He had seen the magic that Crowley created and the vastness of it all and was delighted that Crowley could see how his little waterfowl would compare. Yet, there was no comparison. This dear Angel looked at all of creation with equal awe.
"You are such a Dear. I love, um, I love working with you. You are always so kind to me." Aziraphale said, a bit tongue-tied.
"Nonsense, you are the kind one, Aziraphale. I'm going to call you Angel because you are the most Angely Angel I know," said Crowley. Aziraphale blushed.
Memory 2
"Can you sign this petition?" Said the Angel who would be FurFur.
"What's it for?" Asked Crowley.
"The Archangel Lucifer is collecting signatures for a union he's starting," FurFur replied proudly.
"What kind of union?" Crowley asked.
"He said you asked a lot of questions. It's a question union." FurFur replied.
"That doesn't make any sense," said Crowley.
"It's so you can question, I mean, ask questions to the Almighty," Furfur answered.
"Oh, like a suggestion box?" Grinned Crowley.
"Exactly like a suggestion box." smiled FurFur. He handed the clipboard to Crowley for his signature. A glint of something not entirely angelic flickered in FurFur's eyes, and he took the clipboard and turned away.
Aziraphale had seen the interaction and came up to Crowley. "That was odd. Did you see his eyes?"
"What Angel? No, but that was for a new suggestion box. I told you that would be a good idea."
Memory 3
Aziraphale was by himself, crying quietly. Crowley spotted him and slideled up beside him. "What's wrong, Angel? I've never seen you cry before. Come to think of it, I've never seen anybody cry before." Crowley placed his hand on Aziraphale's back to soothe him.
"I'm sorry. Please leave me and go to have fun with better angels. I don't deserve your friendship."
"What nonsense are you talking about?" Crowley coaxed.
"I did an awful thing, and I…" Aziraphale started crying again.
"What bad thing could you have done? I don't believe it."Crowley declared.
"I disobeyed a rule of creation when I was making the waterfowl." The dejected Angel cried.
"Tell me all about it, Angel. I'm sure it isn't nearly as bad as you believe." Crowley said, trying to calm Aziraphale.
"Dialamide is, well, he's a principality, too. He made an animal that he's calling a croc of dial, and this croc of dial chased Ducky to eat him! I was scared, and I miracled it so that Ducky was always safe and would always escape."
"Oh, you silly Angel. You protected one of the animals. What's wrong with that?" said Crowley, laughing.
Dialamide was very mean about the whole thing, and he's right. I'm not supposed to save the prey from the predators. But Ducky is a little pet. I couldn't bear it if," Aziraphale trailed off.
"Don't worry about it. I'll give that Dialamide a talking-to for being unkind to my Angel." Crowley said, squeezing his hand gently.
"You shouldn't do that because, well, Dialamide was furious. He said, 'I know you did something wrong, and you think your boyfriend will help you just because he's an Archangel.' I'm sorry. I never said anything that would give him that idea. I promise," stuttered the Angel.
"It's alright, Angel. I am your boyfriend, aren't I?"
"But we never, you never said." Stuttered Aziraphale.
"Aziraphale, Crowley said, smiling gently, I spend all my time with you. You mean more to me than all the nebulas I've ever created, than we've ever created together."
"Oh, Dearest," Aziraphale whispered.
Crowley placed a tender kiss on the Angel's forehead, which caused a chain reaction in both of them, and sparks flew like fireworks.
Memory 4
"Angel, It was a weird meeting. It doesn't have anything to do with a suggestion box. You were right about that. Something felt really off." Said Crowley.
They were holding hands and sitting on a balcony overlooking creation.
"I'm so sorry to hear it," said Aziraphale. "Let's not worry about that just now. I'm so happy to sit with you away from everything else. Oh, I wanted to tell you something."
"What's that, love," Smiled Crowley.
"I was given a flaming sword today and told that a new job was forthcoming."
Memory 5
Heaven was in turmoil. Throngs of Angels were arguing and pushing one another. "Aziraphale!" Crowley was shouting over the yelling, "Where are you? I can't find you! Aziraphale!" Crowley saw a flame that had risen above the racket and commotion. He ran to it. Aziraphale stood on an upraised wall, shouting for everyone to calm down.
Crowley jumped up beside him and said, "Here, let me help." He miracled the air around them, and Aziraphale's voice rang out clearly.
"Angels, please stop this arguing. We can all work together. We're intrinsically good and can make all of this better."
Michael shouted back, "You are nothing but a Principality. You have no say in what I do."
Crowley was angry. He had never felt anger before, but hearing someone demean his Angel caused his emotions to spring to the surface. He clasped Aziraphale's hand and fiercely shouted, "MICHAEL!" Michael stood utterly still, a frightened look in her eyes. "I outrank you and ask that you stop this horrible behavior. CALM DOWN, EVERYONE!" His voice reverberated over the din of mayhem, and a confused hush fell over the assembly. "You must stop this immediately. Do you think the Almighty wants her Angels at each other's throats?"
Memory 6
"Aziraphale, word to the wise," said Dialamide. "You and your precious boyfriend are on Heaven's naughty list for stopping that battle. The higher-ups are saying that extreme punishments are in the works for the two of you."
"That can't be true. Heaven is light and love. They would not want war, not ever." Aziraphale declared, wanting desperately to believe it.
"Where have you been? Dialamide smirked. "Lucifer's started a rebellion, and anyone who signed his list is going with him. Kicked out of Heaven, forever. So, your boyfriend won't be able to come to your rescue any longer, now will he?"
Memory 7
A Full-blown war had erupted in Heaven. Swords clanging violently against one another. Brilliant white gold armor glinted in the brightness of Heaven, and by stark contrast, the dark ebony-clad soldiers of the once Angel of Light stood out against the light. Both fought with equal force and violence.
Crowley was not wearing either side's armor. There was pushing and shoving, and the horrors of an actual war in the holiest place in all of creation swirling around him as these two new enemies fought for dominance, but Crowley made his way straight through the chaos and up the main steps. He walked with singular determination. He was going to fight Lucifer.
Lucifer and Gabriel were on the main steps in a battle to the death.
"You took her, you filthy traitor! Give her back!" Gabriel shouted, his voice overwhelmed with pain and anger.
"She signed up for it. She asked me to make her your equivalent. She wanted to come with me." Lucifer shouted back, delight oozing from every syllable that inflicted pain on Gabriel."You won't remember her anyway. The Metatron will take care of that."
Crowley picked up a sword that had been lost in the battle and made his way up the steps. He deflected a blow from Lucifer before Gabriel could react.
"Lucifer, where is Aziraphale?" Said Crowley through gritted teeth.
Gabriel and Crowley began to fight side by side, dueling with Lucifer pushing him backward.
"One at a time, gentlemen. I can only get so much attention from lovey-dovey Angels." Lucifer said, and he sent out a wave of sparks that attached themselves to Gabriel's clothing, catching him on fire.
"Deal with that for a bit, will you, while I have a conference with your friend." He said, smiling with more menace than Crowley thought possible.
"I'll ask again. Where is Aziraphale?" Crowley said as his sword met deftly against his opponent.
"You're too late. Your Angel has already traded his life for yours. He has willingly joined my rebellion. "
"He didn't realize what he was doing. You can't be this insane or cruel. You are the Supreme Archangel. "
"Not anymore. Didn't you get the memo? Gabriel here is the new leader of Heaven. I decided to open my own business. Branch out as it were." Lucifer said with a sardonic laugh.
"Please give me back, Aziraphale. Why do you want him?" Crowley was beside himself.
"I'm nothing if not fair. You can have Aziraphale back if you give me all your Angelic powers."
"What? Power is all you want? That's all you're after? Fine, take it. I just need him back and OK."
"So you are saying you agree. No Angelic powers, then?" Lucifer gleefully smirked.
"Yes, just give him back unharmed, and you can take all my powers."
A soot-black mist began to crawl along the ground and slowly enveloped Crowley. It was attaching to his clothes and staining them with darkness. His wings shone white and soft for a brief moment longer, then the dark mist, like cruel claws, grasped them and turned them as dark as a starless sky.
"Let him go," Lucifer roared to the demons behind him. "I am nothing if not a demon of my word."
Crowley looked down at his garments and turned to look at his wings. "What's all this? What did you do?" He asked with confusion and hysteria. "What have you done to my wings?"
"You said you did not want Angelic powers any longer. Now you get to be a demon, you lucky bastard." Lucifer laughed manically and fled through the crowd.
Gabriel had put out the hellfire that scorched and destroyed most of his clothing, leaving him a ragged mess of armor and tatters.
He saw Crowley transformed, and he was in a furious shock. "You joined him. You fought with me. You were on my side. Why did you join him?"
"I didn't join him. I just gave him my powers to keep Aziraphale safe," said Crowley.
"You idiot, he took you and your powers, you utter fool. That's what he did to her." Gabriel screamed. Suddenly, violet light burst forth from his eyes, squarely hitting Crowley, who tried to deflect it but fell to the floor in agony.
Aziraphale had been running through the crowd, and seeing his beloved Crowley, the victim of Gabriel's rage, he ran between them, deflecting the violet light with the blade of his sword and back toward Gabriel. "YOU WILL NOT HURT HIM!" Aziraphale shouted.
Gabriel fell to his knees. "That wasn't me. I don't know what happened." he whimpered in pain.
Aziraphale threw his sword down and knelt beside Crowley, who was still in agony. The Angel sent wave after wave of healing energy to miracle away the pain. Soon, Crowley sat up, holding his eyes closed with his hands.
"Angel, what happened? That was the worst pain I've ever felt." Crowley was almost whimpering.
"It's alright. I'm here now. I'll protect you." Aziraphale said, soothing him.
"Oh, Aziraphale, I can't. I don't think I can protect you anymore. I lost my Angelic powers." Crowley said with a dejected tone.
"Nonsense. I can feel your energy even now. Maybe even stronger." said Aziraphale, encouraging him. Crowley opened his eyes as the pain began to subside.
Aziraphale gasped. "Your eyes are yellow, and your wings have yet to change. Lucifer promised. He wanted my powers and promised to set you free from the contract you signed. He hasn't taken my powers yet. That must be it." Aziraphale reasoned. "You'll be alright as soon as my powers are gone."
Gabriel began to speak to them. " His eyes shone violet, and he looked like a man in a trance.
"The angels will be separated. The two will no longer be as one. No memory of one for another can they have. They will be pitted one against another as eternal enemies. And one shall bruise his head, and the other shall bruise his heel."
"What are you talking about, Gabriel?" Said Crowley, alarmed."
"You," said Gabriel. His eyes snapped back, and he was his usual self.
"What are we going to do? Can you stand?" Aziraphale asked Crowley.
"We need to get out of here. I only know one place that's safe right now. It will take a miracle, and I might not be strong enough." Crowley said, unsure of his footing as the Angel held him up.
"I'll help you. You can use all my powers to help you." Said Aziraphale.
They stood, and their bodies swayed as they lurched through time and landed in a tranquil garden.
Memory 8
The Garden of Eden (before the beginning)
"Where are we?" Crowley asked. "I don't remember thinking of this place."
"That's my fault. This Garden is where my new job is going to be. It was quiet and peaceful, and I think I rather willed us to be here. I hope you don't mind."
"Mind? Angel, you got us out of a war zone. Good Job."
Aziraphale smiled despite himself. Then, he quickly recovered. Sadness washed over him. "They are going to separate us. I tried to save you, but I am afraid they might try to make you a demon.
Crowley looked down at himself and then quizzically back at the Angel. "Aziraphale, look at me. The dye has been cast. I am a demon.
"No, you aren't. You're still you. You just had a style change, is all."
"They are going to take our memories of each other. We need to come up with something to stop them." Aziraphale said defiantly.
"Angel, we can't stop them. We are an Angel," Crowley looked at himself once again and sighed. "and a demon against all of Heaven and Hell."
"No, I won't hear it. You come up with something right now, or I will never forgive you.' Aziraphale cried.
"Angel, there is only one way even to get a bit of a handhold on this, and I refuse to subject you to it."
"Subject me to what?"
"I won't bond you eternally to me."
Aziraphale smiled widely and fell onto Crowley's shoulder, capturing the newly minted demon into a very excited bear hug. "Oh, do you mean it! I've thought about this since I first saw you."
"Wait, Angel, I said I wouldn't."
"You also said it is the only way," said Aziraphale, still giddy. "We're running out of time."
Crowley was startled. "Did you say you've been thinking about this since we first met?"
"Yes. I have." Aziraphale said, smiling even more brightly.
Crowley swallowed hard. The love emanating from his Angel was overpowering his resolve.
"Angel, this is forever. This bond is eternal. We can never change this decision. I don't want you to regret being bound to a demon." Crowley tried to keep his voice firm and calm, but it broke instead.
As an answer, Aziraphale stood very still, facing Crowley, and held the demon's hand out palm up where a pulsating blue sapphire appeared. Aziraphale closed his eyes, and a glowing orb left his chest and floated into the blue jewel. It took up permanent residence as a comforting blue glow happily swirled inside.
Aziraphale smiled and held out his own hand Expectantly. "I am fully aware of what this means. I want to be with no one else for eternity—only you."
Crowley regarded the Angel that was demanding his heart. Aziraphale was looking at him with those perfect light blue eyes full of so much love and excitement that he smiled and forgot he was a demon for a few brief, beautiful moments.
"I want no one else for eternity, either. You were made to be mine, Aziraphale. You and only you."
Crowley closed his soulful yellow eyes and miracled a living ruby, then placed it in Aziraphale's palm. A similar glowing orb floated from the demon's heart into the brilliant red stone, causing it to shoot crimson lights into the garden.
They looked at one another, and Crowley took the glowing blue stone Aziraphale had given him filled with love and promise and placed it against his chest, melding it deeply within his heart.
Aziraphale began to brim with happy tears, pushing the ruby pulsating with love and unspoken desire into his own heart. As he did so, a golden thread of light began to encircle them.
Crowley took Aziraphale's hands and spoke.
"You now have part of my heart, and I have part of yours. Even if we forget one another, our hearts will remember." The Angel and the demon came together into a gentle, loving kiss that sealed them in an eternal bond.
No Hell, Heaven, demonic contract, memory wipes, war, or horrors existed. They just stood together as one.
Memory 10
An Angel and a demon that were bound together for all eternity were torn from the Garden and yanked back into the battle. Two tall Angelic guards grabbed Crowley and forced him to kneel. The Metatron's head was hovering over Gabriel. "
Finally, here they are." He happily chirped. Another Angel held a sword to Aziraphale's heart, daring him to move.
The head shrank into a man-shaped Metatron, and he walked over to the kneeling demon. "Tut-Tut. It is a shame. We were scheduled to lose only a Principality, but through a technicality, we must, it seems, lose one of our best Angels. Nothing can be done about it, I'm afraid. Rules are rules."
Crowley began to writhe and fight to free himself. Aziraphale shouted, "No, Please take me instead. He's a good Angel. He doesn't deserve this. I'll go to.. wherever you're sending all the evil Angels. Let him stay with you."
"No Aziraphale, Stop!" Shouted Crowley. I can do this. You stay here. I promise I'll find you. We will find one another."
The Metatron interrupted, "Sadly, no, you won't. We must start removing your memories of one another as a kindness to you both. Isn't that right, Gabriel?"
Gabriel stood motionless, non-blinking, and choked out, "Yes, Metatron."
"Well, then it's all settled. Oh, except that we might need a predator in the Garden of Eden for this Principality here to fend off. Let's make him a snake, shall we." The Metatron snapped his fingers, and Gabriel's eyes exploded into violet shockwaves of unforgiving light.
The guards holding Crowley were thrown back several feet from the blast of power. Aziraphale could only weep bitterly as he watched in horror while Crowley writhed in pain and transformed into a massive black and red serpent.
Crowley lunged at Gabriel and knocked him back. The violet light was gone, but more pain flooded the demon's body as the Metatron, welding a sword, slashed Crowley from behind, causing him to fall down the steps, crumpling onto the floor and transforming back into a demon.
His right wing was severely damaged, and the Metatron walked down the marble steps and pushed the tip of the broad sword into the demon's back. "No more questions." he hissed. Crowley could barely move.
Aziraphale sent a blast of healing energy toward Crowley that the Metatron felt and deflected. "None of that!" He barked. "Remove their memories now before I kill this useless Angel myself. And throw the other one off the balcony."
The Garden of Eden. (Present Day)
Crowley and Aziraphale opened their eyes, and looks of shock, horror, and then delight played across their faces as the flood of memories from 6000 years ago settled back, finding their places and filling the empty corners of their minds.