neutral_omens | (no subject)

Date: May, 2000
Setting: Manor Grounds
Status: Public
Summary: A General Announcement and a meeting.

There had been a sign Aziraphale had sellotaped to the edge of his desk a few days ago, since his conversation with Hermes. It was simple, and drew a few questions, but Aziraphale rather liked it. It read:

Mr. Fell's Storytime. Come one, come all!
Saturday after tea.

It made him feel like one of the readers from that show, Jackanory. Except Aziraphale was rather grateful he didn't resemble Prince Charles or the like.

It was now three o'clock and he was sitting in the library, a large, weathered book open in his lap. He had his glasses on, sliding as they were, and a glass of water sat on a coaster within arm's reach. There were pillows strewed about in the small space in front of him, and the bookshelves stretched back. Aziraphale stroked his chin, deep in thought, as he mouthed the words of the next passage.

"Never was the dawn so beautiful," he said to himself, tapping the page. He was so wrapped up in the text and the elaborate illustrations he hadn't noticed the newcomer.

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Ellie slipped into the room a few moments later, smiling slightly when she saw the peculiar little audience Aziraphale had already collected. The smile faded a bit when she'd got a good look at Hermes, however--more specifically, the look of starry-eyed adoration on Hermes' face as he gazed at the angel.

Oh dear. This bodes ill, she thought, observing that Aziraphale didn't seem to have noticed. Typical. She was fairly sure that someone else was going to, though.

After a moment's hesitation--this move was guaranteed to draw attention, something she usually tried to avoid--she went to a spot on the angel's opposite side, tugging another pillow a bit closer so it was more or less directly across from Hermes, and curled up on it like some big cat settling into its favorite snoozing spot on a warm afternoon.

The predatory implications were not altogether unintended. Hermes had wandered into more dangerous territory than he could know, and if Crowley wasn't around to bring this fact to his attention then someone else had better do it before things got too far out of hand.

The fact that the hapless god had also swiped what Ellie considered her storytime spot had, of course, absolutely nothing to do with it.

Aziraphale sent her a warm, happy smile, looking benevolently down at the succubus near his feet. "Hello, dear girl," he whispered. "I'm glad to see you."

He patted Hermes' shoulder, too. "No snakes today, Hermes? Shame, they're such nice girls. Are you comfortable?"

It was nice to be so cozily set between such good friends, the angel thought happily.

"They're shedding, so they're cranky," he answered, relishing the small touch and wrapping the memory up in a bow to look at later. He neglected to mention that after they were done shedding, they were going to look for something to shag--preferably Crowley*. Hermes wonderd if any eggs would come of it, and what they would be.

Seeing Ellie, he smiled. "Hi miss Ellie!" he greeted. "Ooh, I like your outfit today! It looks well on you."

He blushed, realising that he was probably talking too much for a library, and quieted.

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* A) Crowley was the sexiest thing they'd ever seen and B) He was not a mortal snake, making him that much more attractive. Eggs would most likely come of it as the three were the 'same' species, as it were...but only expirimentation would tell.

Ellie smiled fondly at Aziraphale and gave Hermes a guarded look, though like any woman she couldn't help but be secretly pleased at the compliment. He was a sweet thing, but between the kleptomania, the seemingly fragile ego and this unfortunate crush, he just seemed like a crisis waiting to happen.