Tickety-Boo (Ineffable Husbands Week 2019)

2: A Gloomy Night In Mayfair (2,220 Words)

Crowley always hated bad weather, Aziraphale knew this. He could trace the demon's hatred for it all the way back to the day of The Great Flood. (Which was also the day he found out Crowley had a soft spot for children because he soon saw him smuggling some onto Noah's ark without anyone else noticing. He let it slide because he had wanted to do the same, but couldn't.) Ever since then, the rain would put the old serpent in a bad mood. Whether it be anger or sadness just depended on how his week had gone. He'd usually show up at the bookshop and wait out the storm there, talking or doing anything to not acknowledge it causing chaos outside of the building. Aziraphale didn't mind, and he had grown quite accustomed to this. It almost made him look forward to horrible weather.

This time however, Aziraphale knew Crowley would not step foot in the bookshop. In one of their many conversations during the week, the demon groaned and complained about his scales and his wings. Apparently, both his forms decided to sync up, and now he was stuck with the discomfort of shedding his snake-skin and molting his feathers at the same time. Usually he'd flip between human and snake forms to ease the physical annoyance but this time, it'd just be a different type of annoyance no matter which shape he took. According to the demon, the easier issue to bare with was the skin, so he dealt with that first. He was still fighting an uphill battle with the wings, though.

This is why Aziraphale decided he would go to Crowley's flat for the storm to keep him company. He knew how much of a drag it was to leave your home when molting, it was dreadful. And it would only add to the redhead's bad mood if he was stuck there, not by choice, by himself during a thunderstorm. Since the angel knew the demon's refrigerator was most likely empty, apart from anything alcoholic or strange, he filled an old picnic basket with several goodies and made his way over to the Mayfair apartment building.

~~~~~

Aziraphale rang the doorbell and waited patiently for the door to be opened. He could hear the sky rumbling just above him. The rain had started about an hour ago, but the lightning and thunder seemed to be tardy for once. Usually it was the other way around. As he lifted his hand to press the button again, the door swung open halfway. A sleep-deprived looking Crowley glared at him, scanning him with totally serpent eyes. Aziraphale noticed he wasn't wearing his usual style of outfit. Instead, he was in silk pajamas.

(Or rather, silk pajama pants because he was shirtless, which was very unlike Crowley. Still black, of course, which was very much Crowley.)

"Angel, what are you doing here?" He asked, leaning against the doorframe.

Aziraphale noticed he was trying to hide something by standing in the way of the entrance. "As I'm sure you're aware by now, the storm finally arrived. I wasn't about to leave you alone just because your current state makes you think twice about leaving your home."

"Did you walk here with this weather?" He asked, about to be outraged if he said 'yes' because he would've picked him up and brought him, even in the horrible mood he was in. Again, he made sure Aziraphale couldn't see directly into the flat.

The angel glared at him. "Of course not. Just a snap, a wave and I was in your building's lift on my way up here. I thought about getting a taxi but I couldn't be bothered to wait."

Crowley looked annoyed, not with the principality, but annoyed nonetheless. "You should've called, this place is a mess and I-"

Aziraphale rolled his eyes and gently shoved Crowley out of the way to enter the darkly-lit flat. The taller being was still trying to process that Aziraphale, who always got on his case for lacking manners (even though he was a literal demon) had just forced his way into his home. Embarrassment quickly took over because he turned to see the angel placing the basket on top of the coffee-table as he inspected the black feathers which were scattered all over the living room. Crowley locked the door and snapped his fingers, making them disappear.