"I know when it happened," the demon said coldly, "and I understand why. I would probably have told him the same thing then, though I'd have given an explanation for it. But he didn't ask me. He asked you. Assuming something about ineffable mercy, I suppose. About the likelihood of Himself or His angels still caring for one man's soul even while facing the End. I could have set him straight on that, too. At any rate, because you couldn't be bothered to get off your high holy horse and tell him why you weren't going to help him, he turned to Hell. He'd just pulled some stunt on Lucifer to save the soul of one of his mates, so he couldn't just go make a simple deal. No, Mr. Clever Bastard was forced to pull a fast one. He sold his soul to Lucifer, Beelzebub, and your dear Belial, all of whom had equal claims on him. That way, they'd have to keep him alive, because if he were to die, Hell would be plunged into the bloodiest civil war you can possibly imagine. And what do you think would have happened to your boyfriend, then? Belial could either fight and most likely die, or hand over his claim and become even further subjugated to Lucifer."
Crowley paused a moment, letting that sink in. They both knew how Belial had been subjugated before. His hands were shaking in anger, but he fought to keep them at his sides and to keep his voice down.
"Now I'm sure you're thinking that doesn't matter because it didn't actually happen. Lucifer himself ripped open John's ribcage, burned away his lungs, and regrew them as painfully as possible. You've seen the scars. And the man lived. War was averted. Temporarily, anyway. He'll still die one day and then the inevitable would have happened. Do you have any idea what averted that? What saved Belial's arse? I did."
Chest heaving during the explanation, Crowley could feel his throat tighten, but he needed Gabriel to understand. The four of them, Gabriel, Belial, John, and Crowley, their lives, their futures were all inextricably bound together with knots from the past and he'd drag the angel every step of the way if he must to save them all.
"That spell I did on Belial was a gift from John to me. So why the hell did I give it to him? Did you think I did it out of the goodness of my heart? That I just felt like rescuing him from that unenviable situation? Shit, no. I got what I wanted in trade: Belial's claim to John's soul. And if I can get Beelzebub's, I can fix what you carelessly set in motion ten years ago, in which the best outcome for Belial is to be an unaffiliated outcast in hiding and a human soul - no matter what you think of him, he's still a human - is damned without hope of redemption. So think about that and cut us some fucking slack already. You can help me to help them by backing the fuck off."
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2007-06-22 08:02 pm (UTC)Crowley paused a moment, letting that sink in. They both knew how Belial had been subjugated before. His hands were shaking in anger, but he fought to keep them at his sides and to keep his voice down.
"Now I'm sure you're thinking that doesn't matter because it didn't actually happen. Lucifer himself ripped open John's ribcage, burned away his lungs, and regrew them as painfully as possible. You've seen the scars. And the man lived. War was averted. Temporarily, anyway. He'll still die one day and then the inevitable would have happened. Do you have any idea what averted that? What saved Belial's arse? I did."
Chest heaving during the explanation, Crowley could feel his throat tighten, but he needed Gabriel to understand. The four of them, Gabriel, Belial, John, and Crowley, their lives, their futures were all inextricably bound together with knots from the past and he'd drag the angel every step of the way if he must to save them all.
"That spell I did on Belial was a gift from John to me. So why the hell did I give it to him? Did you think I did it out of the goodness of my heart? That I just felt like rescuing him from that unenviable situation? Shit, no. I got what I wanted in trade: Belial's claim to John's soul. And if I can get Beelzebub's, I can fix what you carelessly set in motion ten years ago, in which the best outcome for Belial is to be an unaffiliated outcast in hiding and a human soul - no matter what you think of him, he's still a human - is damned without hope of redemption. So think about that and cut us some fucking slack already. You can help me to help them by backing the fuck off."