Stars In Our Hearts

Chapter Six

It had been ages now since Crowley had last been to Hell. But that didn't mean he couldn't remember each twist and turn of the corridors as if he had never been gone. He had, after all, spent centuries down there before he was sent to Eden, and subsequently, Earth. The walls were still covered from floor to ceiling with mold and uninspiring posters.

Previously when the demon Crowley entered Hell, there would be a large to-do. He was known to have been one of Hell's favorite operatives and therefore had gotten away with far more than the average demon would have. But since his trial and attempted execution, he became one of the most feared demons in Hell. They avoided his cold stare as much as possible, slinking away to other corners of Hell to avoid the demon known as Crowley. Therefore, it was silent when he appeared. His sunglasses had been discarded in the Bentley along with his patience. Fury was rolling off of him in waves, the sheer amount of it enough to terrify any demon within a hundred miles. The hallways had become empty the moment he descended the staircase.

He brushed down hall after hall, the sound of sizzling mold echoing throughout the realm due to the flames shooting from his silhouette. Posters curled into themselves and fell to the floor as the demon passed. When he reached the door he sought, Crowley growled. "What did you do?!" he kicked the door into Beelzebub's office.

They hardly looked up from their desk, unperturbed about the intrusion. "I'm sure I don't know what you mean." Beelzebub continued scratching out their paperwork.

"My daughter," Crowley hissed venomously, slinking closer to the desk on the far side of the room. "What have you done with her?"

The demon finally looked up from their work. "We both know that Hell and I had nothing to do with the disappearance of your spawn. You're barking down the wrong tree."

"Sssstop trying my patienccccee!"

"Look," Beelzebub stood, pushing themselves up with their palms on the rotting wood desk. "There's nothing I can do for you, Crowley. Threaten me all you like, but it won't bring her back."

"What do you know?" Crowley's voice had begun to collapse, coming out hoarse and small. The flames slowly began to die around him, his whole body sagging. "I'm begging you: tell me what they've done with her. Please."

"Crowley, I don't like you, and you know this." The flies moved a little slower, their buzzing faint as Beelzebub continued to watch the demon fall apart. "But I honestly don't know what they've done or what they're planning to do."

Crowley slumped to his knees, tears forming in his eyes as he looked up. "Do you know anything?"

Beelzebub sighed. "Gabriel asked for my help. I told him I wasn't interested and to get lost. He never told me any details."

Crowley thought back to the stench that had crowded the bookshop. Angel, with a little bit of demon. Gabriel with the trace of Hell. "He took her..." Crowley looked back to the ground. "He took her and I don't know why..."

"You want to know why?" Beelzebub scoffed. "You're not very bright if you couldn't figure it out." Crowley glared at them. "Alright. It's because that thing's a threat."

"Carina is not a thing!" Crowley sprang up. "She is my daughter!"

"Heaven sees her as a threat, like I said. There's never been anything like her and her powers are something that Heaven wants for themselves. If she even has any," Beelzebub shrugged. "They really don't know what she can do; if she can do anything at all. But they're not above doing everything they can to figure it out."

"Help me get her back," Crowley said.

Beelzebub sighed again, sitting back down. "No."

The anger flared back up inside of Crowley. "No?"

"You knew what my answer was going to be," they said calmly. "You knew and you asked anyway. Crowley, I can't risk myself for you. In case you don't remember, I still hate you. And I'm not going to do something nice for your just for the heaven of it."

Crowley nodded slowly, the anger melting away again. He did know that it was a lost cause asking for Beelzebub's help, but he didn't have any other option. "So what do I do now?"

"Send that angel of yours to Heaven and have him bring his sword. Then you may get somewhere. But I can guarantee you that you're not going to find help down here."

Crowley left the office and slowly made his way back to the stairwell that would bring him back to Earth. He briefly contemplated just staying in Hell so he wouldn't have to see the pain on the angel's face when he gave him the news. The thing that made him climb the stairs was the thought that if he didn't go back he would lose Aziraphale too. And he couldn't lose both of them.

"Crowley?" Aziraphale had been sitting in the Bentley, wringing his hands together while he waited for the demon to return. "Crowley, did you hear anything?"

Crowley slid into the driver's seat. "It was Gabriel," he said. "Beelz knows nothing. Hell knows nothing. I know nothing..." He sat still for a moment before he buried his face in his hands and began to sob. "Aziraphale, I don't know what to do! Heaven took her. What if this was all part of the Plan?" he turned to the angel. "What if She meant for this to happen all along? What if we were just pawns to create Her something new, something with powers that rivaled Her own?"

"No, I... I can't believe that," Aziraphale shook his head. "The Almighty wouldn't do something like that."

"No?" Crowley bitterly shook his head. "What about the flood? All those children gone just because She was mad at some of the adults. She's never been afraid of bloodshed, angel. I wouldn't put it past Her to do something like this. To take a child–to take our child–because she posed a threat to Her supreme rule."

"Crowley, stop that!" Aziraphale shouted, tears in his eyes as well. "I can't believe that! I won't believe that. I'm going to talk to Gabriel myself. And Michael if need be."

"Why would they tell you anything, angel?" Crowley asked. "Why would they tell you the truth?"

"I..." Aziraphale shook his head. "I need to try."

Crowley nodded, tears streaking down his face. "Be careful, angel. I can't lose you."

Aziraphale pressed their foreheads together. "I love you, my dear. And I'm not going to leave you."