Ch 5 Did I Mention That Heaven is the WORST
The longer Aziraphale was away from Earth, the more anxious he felt. The simple things that had given him comfort, like his books, a fine glass of Sherry or a pastry from Nina's shop, were unavailable in Heaven. But beyond that, there was nothing to replace them with. The empty expanse of the offices were designed to keep the angels focused. It unfortunately had the exact opposite effect on Aziraphale.
As the days ticked on-at least he assumed they did, time felt very different in Heaven-he found his thoughts divided on finding Jesus and saving humanity, and wondering what Crowley was doing. He did hope his demon wasn't causing too much trouble for Muriel. Perhaps he should just pop down and make sure everything was going smoothly.
Before the thought finished forming in his head, Aziraphale was already walking down the hall toward the lift. He felt the weight of something lifting off him; he stood taller. Surely now that Crowley had time to cool off, they could figure out something, a third option. Why couldn't Aziraphale have his office in the bookshop? It already had a direct line to Heaven. Yes, this idea would work quite nicely.
He came to a skidding stop right before the lift, his thoughts catching up. He had hands-on work to do, and if he didn't, there would be no people left on Earth. No people meant no more music, no more books, and no more Ritz. Angels would return to Heaven and any demons would be off to Hell. No more adversaries, no middle ground and therefore, no reason to meet. Before he could set up a work from home situation, he needed to ensure there would still be a home. Aziraphale needed to find Jesus, now.
"This is ridiculous," Aziraphale huffed.
He hadn't done this much pacing around in a very long time. Turning on his heel, he marched himself back down the hall, stopping at the first desk he came across.
"Hello," he said, plastering a smile on his face.
The angel manning the desk lifted their head, the tight brown curls on their head not moving.
"Oh, Supreme Archangel Aziraphale, what can I do to help you?"
The title surprised him. Word had carried fast. "Yes, thank you…" He waited for them to introduce themselves but when they didn't he continued. "I am looking for someone who can point me in the direction of Jesus."
"I'm sorry, sir, but that is not information I have." The angel looked so crestfallen; they had truly hoped they would have been able to help.
"Michael!" Aziraphale blurted. "They might know."
"Yes, sir. That is an excellent idea."
Aziraphale gave the angel a nod and took off across the building to find his once superior.
The lack of windows in a place that literally created the beauty of the universe said a lot about the architects. While pride was a sin, Aziraphale felt in this case, the lack of it was even worse. That was part of what was so wonderful about humans. They could create something and then admire it as if it were too big to have come from them. To see the beauty in the things around you was divine.
The image of Crowley's face flashed in Aziraphale's mind. He was the master at finding all the little joys. He'd been showing them to Aziraphale steadily for the last six thousand years. He had imagined that there was scarcely a new one left to experience but Crowley had shown him before he left that there were still things to experience. Human things. Things that would be gone if he couldn't fix what was coming.
"Can I help you?" Michael's voice interrupted his thoughts.
"Hmm?" he replied, giving his head a little shake.
"You've been standing there for quite some time. I thought perhaps you wanted something from me."
"Yes, I want to speak with Jesus, do you know where he is?"
"Jesus is with God, getting ready for his return. Shouldn't you be with your team doing the same?"
"Well that just won't do. I'm not going to go and get any souls from Earth until I can speak with him."
Micheal held their head up high. "Didn't you read your file? Jesus is going down in three days. Any souls left on Earth at that time will be smote? Smited?"
Aziraphale clenched his teeth. "So you are saying, if I don't take a league of angels to Earth and bring back the righteous, Jesus will send them to Hell?"
"Precisely," they answered flippantly.