fandomtownies | Outside Phale's Rare Books

Outside Phale's Rare Books

After enjoying sleeping until noon, watching a movie in the common room, and running a round of deliveries, Kiki goes out for a walk, relishing the change from flying. She's been doing so much delivering lately from Secret Santa that she feels a bit like she's been glued to her broom. But she had promised Mr. Aziraphale that she was going to be a little easier on herself for the next few days, so she had set aside her delivery duties - which she knew very well were piling up on her answerphone - and her homework and gone out to get some fresh air. She strolls slowly through the park, humming various selections from White Christmas beneath her breath, smiling at the melting piles of snow around the trees and the glare of the ice on the duck pond.

Turning back towards the school, she walks up Apocalypse Avenue, figuring she'll give a wave to Mr. Aziraphale and Mr. Crowley as she passes. Mr. Crowley had been uncommonly nice to her at the party the day before, and she figured she might as well give him the opportunity to get good and snarky with her.

Kiki's a bit surprised to see the "closed" sign up in the window of the shop.

"In the middle of the afternoon?" she murmurs to herself. "Surely he's not still cleaning up from the party?"

She pauses on the stoop, the skeleton key in hand, debating on whether to use it or not.

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[ooc: Is Kiki looking to see Phale, or are you waiting for someone else?]

[ooc: Kiki isn't waiting for anyone, just curious about why the shop was closed. If Phale isn't up for seeing anyone, she'll go, or he can wave her inside.]

[ooc: He'll talk to her, before he leaves to go see Dr. Wilson, so long as Kiki doesn't mind that he's pretty upset. :)]

[ooc: np :) I sent her on her walk just to have her stop by and try to cheer him up ;-) ]

Aziraphale is past his staring blankly at the wall phase and well into his mad-puttering-about-the-shop phase when he notices the small figure at the door. At first he's inclined to pretend not to be in, but he decides very quickly that it wouldn't be fair to the young witch, who was probably concerned about what was going on, and most certainly deserved to know what had happened to Crowley -- who despite the demon's objections to the contrary, was her friend.

So he walks to the door, taking a deep breath to steady himself, and opens it.

"Come in, Kiki, if you please," he says softly.

Kiki is startled at the angels appearance, the lines on his face confirming her apprehension that something wasn't right.

"Mr. Aziraphale?" she asks anxiously, reaching out and laying her hand on his arm. "What's wrong? Please tell me."

"Come in and sit down, my dear. I'll get you a cup of cocoa and then I'll explain."

He closes the door and locks it, then quietly walks off into the kitchen, reappearing a moment later with a mug of hot chocolate. Handing the mug to Kiki, he sits down in a chair and picks up his own cup, holding it in his hands rather than drinking the tea.

"I'm afraid...that Crowley has been called away for a while. I don't know how long he'll be gone."

Kiki smiles her thinks quickly for the mug, and sits down adjacent.

"Called away?" she repeats, not entirely clear on his meaning. Crowley would only be called away by something he actually cared about, and all of that fell into the category of things within this town, so far as she had ever been able to determine. The only other thing that could have done it would be something more powerful than--

"Oh," Kiki says blankly as realization begins to glimmer. "Oh. Ohhhhh."

Aziraphale nods as he sees Kiki come to understand what he's told her, and sips absently at his tea. "I'm sure he'll be back as soon as he's able. He still has gifts to unwrap, after all," he adds, smiling a little as his gaze drifts across the festively decorated shop.

His voice is very neutral, calm.

Kiki's eyes turn as well to the presents under the tree, her two still where she had placed them as Crowley had told her: the lumpy suspiciously hat-shaped one and the tiny one taped to it. She is silent, inwardly marveling at the angel's apparant calm.

Looking back at Aziraphale's closed face, she leans over and gently wraps her arms around him, hugging him closely.

"I don't have wings," she murmurs softly. "I guess my two arms will just have to do."

The angel is a little surprised by the gesture, although he knows really he oughtn't be. He forgets, sometimes, how many friends he's made since coming to Fandom -- he isn't used to even having friends -- and he admonishes himself for it.

Setting down his tea, Aziraphale puts his arms around Kiki and hugs her back. "Thank you, my dear. You're arms will do just fine. I must admit I'm rather in need of a hug just now."

Kiki simply holds Aziraphale for a long while, her own mind mulling over what had happened. Fandom Town without Crowley? It couldn't be. They really wouldn't do that...would they? Not when - not when Fandom Town needed Crowley as much as it needed Aziraphale. Not when they needed each other so much. It wasn't fair. And sure, life wasn't fair - she knew that - but that was a rule made to apply to normalcy, to humans and their ilk. Couldn't there be exceptions?

Kiki, her cheek pressed against the angel's sleeve, finally speaks. "I don't know-" she falters. "I don't know if it's possible," she says, having difficulty articulating her exact thoughts, "I'd have to research it first, I mean, but if I can figure out how...if it's possible, I - I could try to reach Mr. Crowley for you, through - through another seance. I'd do that for you both."

"Oh, no child," Aziraphale says quickly. "That...that wouldn't be a very good idea, I don't think. I do appreciate that offer, very much, my dear. But..." He takes a breath. "Crowley will call me, if..."

He doesn't want to say 'if he's able', because that implies that the demon might not be. And he doesn't want to say 'if he wants', because that implies that there could be a chance Crowley wouldn't. So instead he says, simply, "If he gets the chance, before he comes back."

Because it's just easier to think of it that way.

"I'm sure he will," Kiki replies, "when the opportunity presents itself." She stresses the word emphatically.

She gives a little sigh, one that is charged with a mixture of emotions: sadness, anxiety, empathy, worry... and a faint touch of relief that no seance would be required. Contacting the dead had been difficult enough. She was sure she didn't want to try to get through to a demon in Hell - but she had to offer it. She felt she had so little else to give.

The angel gives Kiki a little smile. "You're right, my dear. As soon as he can, I'm certain." He hugs her again and gives her a light kiss on the cheek.

"You're Crowley's friend, and I don't want you to worry, all right? I'm quite certain he'll be back in a few days. Even...tomorrow, perhaps. Who knows?"

He wasn't as certain as he made out, but somehow it helped Aziraphale a little to be able to reassure someone else. He supposed it was just a way of avoiding thinking about things himself, but whatever it was, it helped a little. And it helped more than a little to know that he had friends around who cared enough to look in him.

"Do you know, I think perhaps I'll go out for a bit, walk through the park, get a little air. I think...that would be a good thing to do."

"I think it would, too," Kiki agrees. "It's a nice day for a walk. And I'm sure Mr. Crowley will be back in short order, all ready to be as professionally unpleasant as ever. I'm sure you'll be the first he sees when he returns, so if you remember, tell him that I expect him to hate my Christmas presents to him good and proper."

Kiki takes Aziraphale's scarf down from the hook and holds it out to him. "You'll take care, won't you? Promise? Mr. Crowley would be insulted if you had a cold when he came back." Inwardly, Kiki is choking on the sort of idiotic and sorry laughter that accompanies truly miserable situations, clustering always with that hard lump of tears that sticks in the throat, as it occurs to her belatedly that first, angels probably don't get colds, and second, he'd been taking quite good care of his ineffable self on earth for 6,000 years without a teenage girl mother-henning him.

Taking the scarf, Aziraphale wraps it carefully around his neck and then slips his coat on over top. Leaning down, he gives Kiki a warm hug.

"You're quite right, my dear. Crowley would be terribly put out if he came back and found that I was wandering about in the cold and not looking after myself. I'm sure he'd have some sharp comment to make about silly angels who don't the sense to come in out of the rain." Taking her hand and giving it a light squeeze, he adds, "Thank you again, my dear. I promise, you'll be the first I call when Crowley returns, so you can come and watch him be properly ungrateful for his gifts yourself."

With a soft smile, Aziraphale unlocks the door and steps outside, stuffing his hands into his pockets and heading off toward the park.

Kiki walks slowly up the street, back towards the school, watching Mr. Aziraphale stroll away through the park.

She'd better find a good welcome-home present for Mr. Crowley. One he'd be sure to really authentically despise passionately.

[[Pest, I emphatically do NOT adore you in the least. Humpf.]]

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Outside Phale's Rare Books

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