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mekachu04It's the smell that catches his attention first.
Burning paper.
The smoke isn’t completely on this plane, which is likely the only things keeping azi from asking questions, as they double back to where the smell drifts from. It’s still haunting.
“It's a little book stand” azi says in sorrow, watching humans scramble to put it the flames. He tries to help them along, frowning when his miracle did not take. That happens to both of them more and more often, but this time, crowley knows its for another reason. The smell also isn’t coming from the little fire; almost burnt out by this point. Nothing will be salvageable.
The smell come from down a little alley nearby.
In the piles of trash is the smoldering cover of a once book. Nothing is left of the pages. Azi goes to touch the ruined thing reverently, but crowley ignores it, shuffling through the bags thrown over in a rush.
There’s a body under the trash; azi jolts in shock. Crowley wishes he could be just as stunned. But he’s seen this before. At least the afterwords.
He’s just never been close enough to see the corporations burn before. It's the first hint that something else going on; the smell of parchment instead of meat.
It's not a member of the Host; not quite so old. Not endowed with so much individuality. But the grimm have been here as long as humans started telling stories, and crowley kneels next to the burning body, pulling it up close with the ease you’d use to move a child.
This one is short, looking like a young man, though most of the features have crusted away. The black eyes are still aware, and they cry inky tears as they are held. They offer no words, just a shuddering sob, and azi kneels down protectively around them both, but makes no move to touch.
Azi’s /heard/ of them of course, but grimm and ethereal beliefs do not mix well. He’s never seen one. Clearly, crowley has.
“Shush, little magpie,” crowley whispers, as the burned hair starts to crumble under his fingers, turning into little green-black feathers that flit to the ground, “its okay now.”
It's a lie.
Soon the body crumbles away to little wisps, leaving the two celestial beings kneeling alone in the trash. The destroyed book remains in azi’s careful grip. Crowley miracles a little box, collecting the feathers in. some of them have already crumbled away like wet tissue paper.
Out on the street, the fire has been put out on the little stand. By the day’s end, no one will remember it. No one remembered any of the other fires after all.
--
“I think we need to take a trip”
____
“Mr Crowley, you didn’t make a reservation.”
((ligt banter, attentant refuses them entrance, pointing at aziraphale, stateing, “mr crowley, you know exactly wht i can’t et you in::))
“I’ll give you a story - ANY story. I’ll give you THE story. Please. I need his brain for this one.”
Aziraphale could see the war playing out on the attendants face,
“45 hundred years, and you’ve never once tried to pull a fast one one us. You’ve never been anything put transparently fair. There’s a betting pool going on that you’re not actually a demon at all.” She pulls out a book, old quill pen in hand, “Mr Crowley, please state the deal again.”
Crowley sits up straighter, and nods, “Anthoney J Crowley owes the Squirrel Order my first story.” he pauses to let her write, but holds out the end of the word to let her know there;s more, “And if this deal directly causes Ekorre the Grimm to be decommissioned, then I owe the Order two more stories after that.”
The pen seems to write on its own, as the woman gapes openly at him, “Mr Crowley!”
“I mean it Ekorre, something’s happening. You know it is, too. I would never break the rules if this wasn’t very, very important.”
--------------
SHe hands him a pass - it’s from their lost and found, another member who’d left it behind by mistake a milliunuim ago
“Dont let the toad catch you, they will not care about any deals, especially from the occult. Otherwise, look for our celestials, they would help you search if you need it, but they will want payment.”
---------------
“What did she mean, decommissioned?”
Crowley says nothing for a long time, face town between anger and despair. “They’re not supposed to have a personality, Angel. They’re not meant to have… feelings. They were never supposed to be … real.”
“She is though.”
“Yeah. But even then, the story is more important than her existence.”
He’s not crying.
“I knew that, I knew she’d never say no. They’re gonna delete her for this, but i can’t think of any other way of getting you inside.”
He hands Azirapahle a pair of white cloth gloves. Theirs no hint of a miricle, these are and have always been real. “Did you steal theses from my shop?”
Its the first smile he hints at, but it’s small and fleeting. “Don’t touch anything his bare skin,a nd under no circunstances prefor a miricle while inside. If you want to see a book, tell me which one; don’t try and take it off hte shelf yourself until i show you how to chech it out witht he pass.
-------------
Whta’s ‘the’ story?”
“Hmm?”
“You told her you’d tell her ‘the’ story. You implied then it was soemthing ‘more important than her
existance’.”
….
…Crowley?
…
It’s okay, never mind my asing -
The fall.
-Crowley leeps walking, Aziraphale stoppped dead in his tracks. Crowley did n’t talk about falling, not really. Sure their where defliecting comments, but never really talke dbout it with detail. Adnt he clues crowley had dropped about the nature of the grimm turned his core to ice.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_destroyed_libraries
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_burning
>fire/toad order pissed about hastur burning the records of the chattering nuns (refused to do business with all demons, but esp hastur/crowley since he could smell both of them there that day. The other orders refused to do business with crowley in solidarity for 10 years. He didn’t know why until after the ‘pocodidn’t [didn’t want to pay for the why, just accepted it] )
