Let the Snake out of the Bag
Aziraphale had actually been a bit surprised to receive an invitation to Adam Young's 18th birthday party. He hadn't seen the young man in a few years and he'd been convinced that he was all but forgotten now that Adam was older. It was actually rather nice to get invited to something that didn't involve Heaven. When he'd phoned Crowley about the invitation, the demon didn't seem surprised at all.
"Oh yeah, I knew it was coming. Talked to him a couple of months ago." He shrugged a little. It made a bit of sense to him that the teenager would be more inclined to keep in touch with a demon than an angel. Just human nature.
"Oh." Aziraphale seemed a bit pouty at that news, but he just shook it off. "We're going, of course." There was no room for argument in his tone.
"Yeah, okay. Sure." Crowley wasn't really listening to what the angel was saying, he just tended to agree and Aziraphale never really noticed when they were speaking on the phone. Harder to not pay attention when they were talking in person. He told himself it was because Aziraphale could actually see him and had nothing to do with his inability to take his eyes off the other man.
"Right. I'll swing round when the day comes and we can ride to Tadfield together." He then hung up before Crowley could argue.
"What did I agree to?" Crowley shook his head and hung up the phone.
The day of the party arrived and Aziraphale made his way to Crowley's flat. He didn't bother knocking. They'd gotten over that little formality quite a long time ago. He let himself in with a little wave of his hand to unlock the door.
"Crowley, are you ready to go?" Aziraphale looked as if he were wearing the same thing he always wore but there was one difference. Today he was wearing his special occasion bowtie. It was a nicer quality than the one he wore day to day.
"Ready for what?" Crowley said as he walked back into his office carrying an empty plant pot. Yet another disappointment, he set the pot on his desk. Aziraphale rolled his eyes.
"For the party!" He said exasperated.
"Oh, right. Not going, sorry." Not sorry, Crowley added in his head.
"Yes, you are. We're not going to let that young man down." Aziraphale came very close to actually stamping his foot. He wasn't going to let Crowley get out of this one.
"Oh, right. Because I need to be at a party with a bunch of teenagers. Don't you think it'd be very bad to put a temptation demon in a room full of people with limited inhibitions?" Yes, that was a good way to get out of it.
"You're not using that excuse again, Crowley. Now get dressed and let's go." Aziraphale crossed his arms.
"Not going." Crowley said and went into his bedroom. As soon as he was out of sight of Aziraphale, he shifted into his snake form.
"Yes, you are." Aziraphale started to follow him and then stopped when he was confronted by the rather large black and red snake. "Crowley, you promised." Crowley didn't actually remember doing any such thing.
"Breaking a promissssse?" Crowley's voice rang in Aziraphale's head. "I'm a demon. It'sssss what I do." He let out a series of hisses that could have been considered a laugh.
"Do you honestly think that this is going to keep me from taking you to the party?" Aziraphale smirked.
"Would love to sssssee you try." Crowley flicked his tongue and Aziraphale could almost see the smirk on the smug face.
"Very well." Aziraphale snapped his fingers and crowley was suddenly zipped up inside a rather large duffel bag. He began to hiss and wiggle and try to get his way out of the bag. He could easily get out if he just shifted to his body but that would mean Aziraphale had won and he refused to concede defeat.
The angel hefted the bag over one shoulder and patted it gently. "Now, don't squirm too much. Wouldn't want to get kicked off the bus before we get to Tadfield." He chuckled as he walked out the door. Crowley continued to shift and hiss trying to draw attention to himself.
One thing that the trip out to Tadfield had taught Aziraphale was that people were very much willing to completely ignore anything they set their mind to ignoring. Though Crowley, in snake form, continued to writhe and hiss the entire way out to the small town, no one really said anything. There was the occasional glance here and there, a little bit of whispering, but everyone just left him alone. It was actually rather refreshing. He gave the bus driver a little extra money as he got off for putting up with him and then stepped out onto the sidewalk.
"Will you behave yourself?" Aziraphale asked as he shifted the bag on his shoulder. Crowley was rather heavy.
"Didn't want to come, you ssssstupid bassstard." Crowley hissed in Aziraphale's mind again. "Now let me out."
"Only if you'll stop being a snake." Aziraphale ordered.
"Abssssssolutely not." Crowley replied.
"Then you stay in the bag." Aziraphale nodded even though Crowley couldn't see it and kept walking until he got to Adam's house.
There were quite a few people already at the party when Aziraphale arrived. It had been in full swing for a little while, Crowley causing him to be late which he didn't like at all. The circle of people surrounding the birthday boy made it next to impossible to go say hello so Aziraphale simply took a seat, tucking the duffle bag underneath his chair. He then went and got some punch and a bit of food before returning to the chair.
"Azi!" Adam said as he spotted the man. He made his way over to say hello. Aziraphale didn't like the nickname but he let Adam get away with it. Adam was the only one that got to call him that, though.
"Hello, Adam. Happy birthday." The angel said with a smile. Adam gave him a chance to set down his plate and cup before giving him a quick hug.
"Thank you. I'm glad you could make it." He grinned, then he looked around for a moment. "Where's Crowley?"
Aziraphale cleared his throat and looked down at the bag that was still writhing and hissing but this time under one of the chairs.
"Why's he in a bag?" Adam tilted his head.
"He was being a bit of a bother and changed into a snake to try to get out of coming. I'm terribly sorry. He usually enjoys parties but we had a rather....tramatic experience at the last birthday party we attended. I think it still haunts him." That party certainly still haunted Aziraphale.
"Well, that's absolute rubbish." Adam said and shook his head. He smirked at Aziraphale and then winked. In the literal blink of an eye, Crowley was suddenly sitting in the chair next to Aziraphale's. He was dressed rather smartly in a well fitted black suit with red pinstripes, designer sunglasses in place. "That's better." He grinned. "Now, enjoy the party, you two. I've got more people to meet."
Crowley's eyes followed Adam as he walked away and he just stared for a moment. He then turned and looked at Aziraphale. "Thought you said he was human now."
"I thought he was." Aziraphale said, still staring at the young man. "I suppose I was wrong." He sat down rather suddenly in the empty chair next to Crowley.
"Guess you were." The only other thought that came to Crowley in that particular moment was that he definitely needed a good, stiff drink.
"Oh yeah, I knew it was coming. Talked to him a couple of months ago." He shrugged a little. It made a bit of sense to him that the teenager would be more inclined to keep in touch with a demon than an angel. Just human nature.
"Oh." Aziraphale seemed a bit pouty at that news, but he just shook it off. "We're going, of course." There was no room for argument in his tone.
"Yeah, okay. Sure." Crowley wasn't really listening to what the angel was saying, he just tended to agree and Aziraphale never really noticed when they were speaking on the phone. Harder to not pay attention when they were talking in person. He told himself it was because Aziraphale could actually see him and had nothing to do with his inability to take his eyes off the other man.
"Right. I'll swing round when the day comes and we can ride to Tadfield together." He then hung up before Crowley could argue.
"What did I agree to?" Crowley shook his head and hung up the phone.
The day of the party arrived and Aziraphale made his way to Crowley's flat. He didn't bother knocking. They'd gotten over that little formality quite a long time ago. He let himself in with a little wave of his hand to unlock the door.
"Crowley, are you ready to go?" Aziraphale looked as if he were wearing the same thing he always wore but there was one difference. Today he was wearing his special occasion bowtie. It was a nicer quality than the one he wore day to day.
"Ready for what?" Crowley said as he walked back into his office carrying an empty plant pot. Yet another disappointment, he set the pot on his desk. Aziraphale rolled his eyes.
"For the party!" He said exasperated.
"Oh, right. Not going, sorry." Not sorry, Crowley added in his head.
"Yes, you are. We're not going to let that young man down." Aziraphale came very close to actually stamping his foot. He wasn't going to let Crowley get out of this one.
"Oh, right. Because I need to be at a party with a bunch of teenagers. Don't you think it'd be very bad to put a temptation demon in a room full of people with limited inhibitions?" Yes, that was a good way to get out of it.
"You're not using that excuse again, Crowley. Now get dressed and let's go." Aziraphale crossed his arms.
"Not going." Crowley said and went into his bedroom. As soon as he was out of sight of Aziraphale, he shifted into his snake form.
"Yes, you are." Aziraphale started to follow him and then stopped when he was confronted by the rather large black and red snake. "Crowley, you promised." Crowley didn't actually remember doing any such thing.
"Breaking a promissssse?" Crowley's voice rang in Aziraphale's head. "I'm a demon. It'sssss what I do." He let out a series of hisses that could have been considered a laugh.
"Do you honestly think that this is going to keep me from taking you to the party?" Aziraphale smirked.
"Would love to sssssee you try." Crowley flicked his tongue and Aziraphale could almost see the smirk on the smug face.
"Very well." Aziraphale snapped his fingers and crowley was suddenly zipped up inside a rather large duffel bag. He began to hiss and wiggle and try to get his way out of the bag. He could easily get out if he just shifted to his body but that would mean Aziraphale had won and he refused to concede defeat.
The angel hefted the bag over one shoulder and patted it gently. "Now, don't squirm too much. Wouldn't want to get kicked off the bus before we get to Tadfield." He chuckled as he walked out the door. Crowley continued to shift and hiss trying to draw attention to himself.
One thing that the trip out to Tadfield had taught Aziraphale was that people were very much willing to completely ignore anything they set their mind to ignoring. Though Crowley, in snake form, continued to writhe and hiss the entire way out to the small town, no one really said anything. There was the occasional glance here and there, a little bit of whispering, but everyone just left him alone. It was actually rather refreshing. He gave the bus driver a little extra money as he got off for putting up with him and then stepped out onto the sidewalk.
"Will you behave yourself?" Aziraphale asked as he shifted the bag on his shoulder. Crowley was rather heavy.
"Didn't want to come, you ssssstupid bassstard." Crowley hissed in Aziraphale's mind again. "Now let me out."
"Only if you'll stop being a snake." Aziraphale ordered.
"Abssssssolutely not." Crowley replied.
"Then you stay in the bag." Aziraphale nodded even though Crowley couldn't see it and kept walking until he got to Adam's house.
There were quite a few people already at the party when Aziraphale arrived. It had been in full swing for a little while, Crowley causing him to be late which he didn't like at all. The circle of people surrounding the birthday boy made it next to impossible to go say hello so Aziraphale simply took a seat, tucking the duffle bag underneath his chair. He then went and got some punch and a bit of food before returning to the chair.
"Azi!" Adam said as he spotted the man. He made his way over to say hello. Aziraphale didn't like the nickname but he let Adam get away with it. Adam was the only one that got to call him that, though.
"Hello, Adam. Happy birthday." The angel said with a smile. Adam gave him a chance to set down his plate and cup before giving him a quick hug.
"Thank you. I'm glad you could make it." He grinned, then he looked around for a moment. "Where's Crowley?"
Aziraphale cleared his throat and looked down at the bag that was still writhing and hissing but this time under one of the chairs.
"Why's he in a bag?" Adam tilted his head.
"He was being a bit of a bother and changed into a snake to try to get out of coming. I'm terribly sorry. He usually enjoys parties but we had a rather....tramatic experience at the last birthday party we attended. I think it still haunts him." That party certainly still haunted Aziraphale.
"Well, that's absolute rubbish." Adam said and shook his head. He smirked at Aziraphale and then winked. In the literal blink of an eye, Crowley was suddenly sitting in the chair next to Aziraphale's. He was dressed rather smartly in a well fitted black suit with red pinstripes, designer sunglasses in place. "That's better." He grinned. "Now, enjoy the party, you two. I've got more people to meet."
Crowley's eyes followed Adam as he walked away and he just stared for a moment. He then turned and looked at Aziraphale. "Thought you said he was human now."
"I thought he was." Aziraphale said, still staring at the young man. "I suppose I was wrong." He sat down rather suddenly in the empty chair next to Crowley.
"Guess you were." The only other thought that came to Crowley in that particular moment was that he definitely needed a good, stiff drink.
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