#but hhhh this was such a bittersweet idea nony so ty

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

Imagine Crowley and Aziraphale getting into an argument which turns into a big fight and Crowley is so angry his scales start to sprout through his skin, which surprisingly frightens the angel. He had never seen him that angry before so he just runs away in fear, leaving a less angered and sadder Crowley to his lonesome. He scared the one true thing he cared about other than the reader helps make it right by going to Crowley first, to convince him to apologize.

“You know that was really stupid of you, angel!”

“Well what was I supposed to do? Let those scoundrels push you around?!”

“They were Ifrits. Enormous bloody fire demons! One little ember on ya and would’a been a goner!!” Crowley hissed, scowling deeply at Aziraphale as the two stared each other down.

Even though they both settled down in a cozy cottage for a while, a few Ifrits confronted Crowley in his flat earlier that day, not to bring him back to Hell, but to taunt him and give him crude remarks such as “traitor”, “scum”, and the like. Some of them even incinerated his perfect plants, which made the demon understandably furious.

But when Aziraphale came to his defense and tried to convince the Ifrits to leave, such an act nearly cost him his life. Had he not brought holy water he would have been gone for certain; they were among the most antisocial demons who could have very well killed Aziraphale the moment he appeared.

Even though the situation was quickly dispersed and they left peacefully, Crowley was now furious that the angel could’ve died in that confrontation.

And he didn’t seem to care.

“Well look, I don’t have a spec of ash on me. So there’s no sense in arguing about it now.” Aziraphale huffed as he straightened his bowtie. “What’s done is done.”

Crowley’s jaw dropped in disbelief. “Wha..so y-you don’t even care that you could’a been discorporated again or-?!”

“I was trying to help you!” The angel spoke up, although he tried to keep his tone even. “The one time I try to repay you for saving me, it’s suddenly the end of the world now?!”

“Listen..losing you once was awful! And I’d be damned if I ever went through that again!!”

“Crowley, calm down. Loss is part of life and if you can’t handle that-”

At that moment, something in the demon snapped. And he slammed his hands down onto the table, causing it to shake violently. “DON’T YOU EVER TELL ME TO “CALM DOWN”, ANGEL!!!” He screamed as he gritted his teeth in fury. “I DIDN’T SAVE YOU ALL THOSE YEARS JUST FOR YOU TO GET YOURSELF KILLED IN A STUPID WAY!!”

Aziraphale flinched at his reaction, although before any more words could leave his lips, his eyes widened in shock as he noticed black scales starting to to cover Crowley’s neck and arms. Even his teeth were turning into sharp canines and fangs.

In all the years he knew him..he had never been more terrified of him than he was now. Just seeing his dear friend so enraged by his act of selflessness…gave him an ache in his chest.

All he did was try to protect him, repaying him for all those years he rescued him from certain death and discorporation.

Was it truly wrong for him to do that?

Without utter another word, Aziraphale quickly turned tail and left the house. Crowely watched him leave, seething in his own silence and anger, although the moment the door slammed shut, he calmed down slightly.

But when he touched his neck and felt the scales, that’s when he was struck with a horrific realization: He scared his angel off. Made him..afraid of him.

“Oh no..goddamnit..” He mumbled to himself, closing his eyes as he propped his elbows on the cracked table, hands buried in his hair. Tears began welling up as his own words replayed over and over in his mind “What have I done?”

He lost his best friend twice now. But this time..it was his fault.

………

Sometime later, Crowley was just sulking around the house, alcohol bottles strewn around the place, when he heard a knock at the door. In hopes that it was Aziraphale, he anxiously walked over to open it, wobbling slightly.

But when he did, he saw that it was only you and frowned deeply. “Oi, what brings..ya here today…m’ good friend?” He slurred, taking another gulp of wine as he sniffled.

Your eyes widened as you looked him up and down, seeing that his sunglasses were askew, revealing the tears in his eyes, and his incredibly disheveled hair and clothing.

“Making sure you’re alright..but..you look like shit.” Inviting yourself inside, you closed the door and had him put his arm around your shoulders. The drunken demon could only whine as you lead him to the living room, where you sat him down on the couch before you joined him.

“I called Azira earlier, and he sounded depressed,” you explained. “Says you and him had a big fight and-”

“Of course..of course. An’ he had a good reason to.” He mumbled, although before he could raise the glass to his lips again, you took it from him. “Whyyy? ‘s not gonna kill me.”

“I know but I don’t like seeing you this way, and I’m sure he wouldn’t either.” You removed his sunglasses for him, setting them down.

“I’m sure he could give even less of a shit now.” He sniffled softly, inching closer to you as he curled up. “That’s 6000 years of friendship gone down th’ drain. All my fault. All ‘cause of m’ stupidity. I really am just an..ugly creature under this skin..”

“No. That’s not true. He didn’t sound angry with you.” As a comforting gesture, you wrapped an arm around him. “Can you tell me exactly how this all started?”

“…well..it..it all started in th’ garden, where I was a sneaky serpent-”

“Crowley you know what I mean,” you cut in gently, before sighing and looking at the wine bottle. “Sober up, then tell me what led to the argument.”

“Ngh..”

“Please?”

Eventually, Crowley agreed and reversed the wine’s effects, refilling the bottles as though he never drank to begin with. Afterwards he explained to you how the argument began.

When he mentioned how Aziraphale ran off because he was scared of him, that surprised you immensely, although you were relieved that they didn’t tear the house down during the whole spiel.

But even so, you could see how torn up Crowley was about the whole situation. It was clear he had been crying and drinking for a while before you stopped by to check on him.

Once he was done telling you everything, you sighed once more and stood up. “C’mon. Get up.”

He just gave you a questionable look, his snake eyes blinking several times.

“We’re taking a trip to the bookshop. I think an apology is the best course of action.”

………..

Sometime later, you and Crowley arrived at the bookshop in the Bentley. But even as he parked the car, he just stared at the entrance with sadness and hesitance.

“I-I can’t face him [y/n]..not after-”

“You can’t expect him to forget about it tomorrow, or in the next decade.” You huffed. “I’ll be right behind you. Just go in.”

However, he just shook his head, hands still gripping the wheel as he looked out at the crowded streets and sidewalks, his mind racing with thoughts of uncertainty.

Then an idea struck him and he turned back to you. “Question, can your pocket fit a tiny snake?”

You blinked in surprise, but before you could give him an answer, Crowley took your hands and transformed into a small black snake right before your very eyes. His sleek, thin body curled itself around your fingers comfortably, before his eyes gazed up at yours.

A soft chuckle of amusement escaped your lips as you patted his head. “Alright. I’ll talk to him first.” You slipped the snake into your coat pocket, making sure he was okay in there before you got out of the Bentley.

As expected, when you entered the shop, Aziraphale was in the back reading something. He looked up at you and smiled. “Oh! [Y/n]! It’s good to see you. But I can assure you that I’m quite alright now.”

“I know,” you nodded, walking over to sit on the couch across from him. “But Crowley’s a bit of a wreck ever since..y’know.”

Immediately his smile faltered and he set down his book, sighing quietly. “Yes. I..can only imagine how awful he must feel. And I know it was wrong of me to just run off like that. I was only trying to do one good selfless act for him, but..I agree it was stupid.”

“No it’s not.” You reassured him. “He just cares about your safety so much, losing you in that fire during Armageddon was pretty traumatic for him. Infernal fire is lethal to angels so..I don’t blame him for being so worried about you.”

“Perhaps..” He fiddled with the sleeves of his coat. “Well, for what it’s worth..I still forgive him. Even if he insists demons are unforgivable, I just can’t be afraid or angry with him forever. He’s been too good to me over the years and..”

However, he trailed off as he noticed a little snake wriggling out of your pocket. You saw Crowley grow slightly, dropping to the floor before he turned back into his normal-self, tears shimmering in his eyes.

“D-Damn you, angel..” He mumbled shakily, stiffening up as Aziraphale stood up and walked over to him. But before he could say a word, the angel pulled him into a close hug.

Crowley gritted his teeth as he clung to him, resting his head on his shoulder. “I-I swear I..I won’t ever fuckin’ scare you like that again,” he choked out. “Just..please for the love of God stop me if I do..”

Aziraphale simply nodded in acknowledgement, his eyes shifting to you as he smiled. A silent “thank you” for helping them mend their close relationship.

You smiled in return and, after deciding that they needed time alone, wandered back out to the front of the bookshop, happy that you were able to make things right.