"Aziraphale, we cannot have our field agents running around with an agent of the Adversary seeking to-"

Aziraphale cut Gabriel off, a risky move, "I'm not running around with anyone seeking to do anything. I've been keeping an eye on the, er, Adversary's agent for some time now" he sighed internally, knowing that nothing he said would dissuade the Archangel. Gabriel was not pleased with the outcome of Armageddon-that-wasn't, and Aziraphale had hoped that Heaven would just ignore his involvement, and Crowley's involvement, but clearly they had done neither.

"What I am saying is that you knew of the impending apocalyptic plans from the Adversary and you decided that the 11 years in between were best served consuming food and alcohol and driving around England?" Gabriel replied, stepping further into Aziraphale's shop.

When Gabriel arrived, Aziraphale had not been expecting him. He had a few more customers since Adam updated his inventory, but most frequently, if he heard someone enter, it was Crowley. Which reminded him, he needed to get Gabriel out of his shop quickly, since Crowley was picking him up for dinner at 8. The clock read 7:52. Aziraphale was certain that Gabriel would smite Crowley the moment he walked into the shop.

"What should I expect to happen" he asked, turning back to Gabriel, "am I being recalled, reassigned…" he trailed off not wishing to give Gabriel any ideas.

Before Gabriel could answer the door flung open, "Angel, were you thinking the Ritz, that new Sushi place by my flat or," Crowley's breath hitched in his throat "hey Gabe" he said in a way that Aziraphale could only describe as meekly.

Gabriel's eyes had gone wide, and he was trying to form a response.

Aziraphale walked over to the door where Crowley stood, the demon still looking in the Archangel's direction "Dear boy, are you trying to get discorporated?" He asked, his voice hushed and with the tone of a parent explaining to a child that they just used a word without understanding its meaning "No one calls Gabriel 'Gabe' unless they want unpleasant results"

"He can" Gabriel said hoarsely "I didn't expect to see you again. I've been watching of course, but you here, in front of me." He paused "I've missed you"

Aziraphale looked between them, confused.

The doors to the shop locked, and the window coverings drew themselves. "SOMEONE is going to explain to me what is going on here."

Gabriel looked to Crowley, panicked. "Does he not know?"

Aziraphale walked directly to Gabriel, with as much bravado as he could muster, "that was not an answer, what is going on, and do I not know what?"

"Angel, let's go to the back and open a bottle, maybe sit down." Crowley suggested, hooking his arm with Aziraphale's and making direct eye contact with Gabriel.

Aziraphale allowed himself to be led to the back room of the store and selected a wine at random from the shelf. He poured a glass for himself and drank it uncharacteristically fast before refilling it, and filling 2 more. He turned back to the seating area. Crowley was seated in his normal chair, and Gabriel was standing in the corner, a hair shy of cowering.

"Angel" Crowley began, taking the glass Aziraphale offered "I didn't know you before I-" he gestured downward "and I don't think you knew me either." He looked to Gabriel who nodded curtly. "I was nobody. Just a lowly angel, easy to overlook. Why would a Principality know who I was or take notice of me. Why would an Archangel?"

"Except that I did" Gabriel added in an exhale.

"You did what" Aziraphale snapped

Gabriel looked away "knew who he was, took notice of him" he paused for a long moment, and then continued barely louder than a whisper "loved him"

Aziraphale's jaw went slack, and he felt pinpricks of unnecessary tears begin to form. Whatever he had expected from this discussion, it was not that revelation. "Leave" he choked out "please both of you just leave."

"Wait" Crowley pleaded "really I can do a better job explaining than that."

"I really don't want to hear excuses for why you never found it necessary to let me know about this, so please leave. I need to… I just need you to leave Crowley" Aziraphale said.

"Angel-" Crowley sobbed

"GO Crowley." Aziraphale snapped "I'll call you if I'm ready to talk to you again"

The "if" struck Crowley hard. He turned silently and headed toward the door, magicking it open and slamming it shut behind him.

"That means YOU too. I can't deal with either of you right now Gabriel. I'm sure you are very pleased with yourself."

Gabriel sunk down, his usual swagger and confidence gone. "I'm not proud of myself and I truly wasn't aware that you didn't know. I'm sorry. I'll leave now."

He walked out of the shop and saw Crowley leaning against the Bentley, sunglasses off, tears visible in his golden eyes.

"Gadre'el, I never meant-"

"DON'T call me that. My name is Crowley." The last thing Crowley wanted at the moment was to think of who he had been before The Fall.

"Fine. Crowley, I never meant to cause a rift with you and Aziraphale. I was not expecting to see you today… or ever" he added as an afterthought. "I simply came to inform Aziraphale that Heaven is not pleased with him and he has a formal review coming up."

Crowley whipped his head around, "so help me Go-Sat-Somebody if you recall him I'll come up there and kill you myself." His eyes were blazing.

The Archangel walked over to where Crowley was sitting against the Bentley's hood and placed his hand on the roof, leaning against the car "It's been discussed, Michael is certainly in favor of it. I haven't actually spoken to Raphael, and I'm not sure he will even come to the review. And I was planning to stay on Earth until then to assist in my decision." His face betrayed the disdain he held for earth and those who inhabited it.

Crowley returned his sunglasses to his face "not sure he's going to be too receptive to that anymore." He glanced to the bookshop "uh, where are you going to stay while you're here, if you're still planning on being here?"

Gabriel considered the question, staying with Gadr-Crowley would be nice, but he didn't particularly desire a flaming sword to the throat. "I hadn't thought that through, honestly. My plan was to stay with Aziraphale."

"Aziraphale will kill one or both of us, but you can stay at mine. Get in the car." Crowley said, as he slid into the driver's seat and the Bentley started on its own.

Crowley's grip on the steering wheel was so tight his knuckles were white. He figured that he could get Adam to forgive him for messing with things if it meant smoothing things over between Heaven and Hell so he drove at a breakneck speed back to his flat.

Gabriel looked out the window in horror. He had never been in an automobile before, and Crowley's zigging and zagging between cars and pedestrians was more than a little concerning to him. "I'm not explaining to Heaven or Aziraphale if we hit something in this contraption."

"Gabe, relax," Crowley drawled "I've been driving for over a century and only hit something once or twice" he flashed a grin to his left.

"Once or twice, reassuring" Gabriel muttered.

Crowley pulled up in front of his flat, and the wheel clamp appeared on the Bentley. Bringing Gabriel into his flat was a bad idea. He knew that. But there he was outside, ready to go in. Perhaps he could gain some points with his superiors by tempting- no that was a bad train of thought. He shouldn't be tempting anyone other than HIS angel. And it wasn't really tempting with Aziraphale, or maybe it was just them tempting one another.

"So. Are we just going to sit in the car all day?" Gabriel brought Crowley out of his thoughts.

"Erm, no, right, upstairs we go then."

Gabriel, of everyone that Crowley could have secretly been with before he fell, of course it would have been Gabriel.

Aziraphale was still fuming from the revelation. He felt hurt and betrayed and insulted. Crowley never talked about the time before he fell. They hadn't known one another then, and the topic never really presented itself. As he thought back, Aziraphale vaguely remembered Gabriel having an interest but he never caught the boy's name. The Archangels mostly kept to themselves. Michael had his Lucifer, Raphael had any number of angels at any given time and to be honest Aziraphale just never got involved with that. Angels were sexless after all, but there had been a lot of effort made back then.

How had he never noticed Crowley, or whoever Crowley had been back then. Was it truly an attraction of convenience? Since Crowley was the only one of Angel Stock on Earth with him for all those years. No! He truly did care for Crowley. He wasn't going to let Gabriel ruin this too. Since he was so keen on ruining everything else in Aziraphale's existence. But how could Crowley have kept this from him for six thousand years?

And where was Gabriel now? He hadn't been thinking when he threw his lover and his boss out of the shop. Of course they would go somewhere together. His chest hurt at the thought of Gabriel, handsome and perfectly put together, at the Ritz, or St James's Park, or anywhere with Crowley.

Given time, Crowley would without doubt return to Gabriel. Who wouldn't? Aziraphale held no illusions about what he was, stuffy, dithering, not up to date with fashion or technology. And Gabriel was everything he wasn't. Even if Crowley hadn't been a matter of convenience for him, he was becoming sure that he had been so for Crowley.

He had likely just lost everything. His position as a field agent, his carefully cultivated life on Earth, everything he had known for millennia. Because he had been tempted to stand against Heaven. Because Crowley had convinced him that it was worth it to be on their own side. Not Heaven, not Hell, just Them. And now he wasn't sure he had any of that. No Heaven and now no Crowley either.

Aziraphale walked back into the back room of the shop and saw the two empty wine glasses and the one still containing wine. He grabbed it roughly, downed it in one gulp and sat on the couch. For the first time in, well, ever, Aziraphale thought Crowley's idea of sleeping sounded okay.

So he did.