good omens fanfic throwback thursday~
angel and ash
thank you @curiouspupsicle and @copperplatebeech for getting the ball rolling on throwback thursdays, and to @quitequaintrelle and @carry-the-sky for further inspiring me to participate!
since this weekend was london pride, i thought it would be a good opportunity to look back on the fic i wrote for the trans omens events minibang back in 2024, with amazing art by @wasleichtesart and a cover by @portraitofalonelydyke (above).
for a long time, i struggled to think of an idea for this fic, as is typical for me when i decide i want to write anything for an event! eventually, i started to think about the dowling years, as i've seen writing before about crowley manifesting a specifically transfeminine form as nanny ashtoreth. i wondered - what if crowley and aziraphale stumbled across one another completely by accident in the london trans scene not long after they had helped to raise warlock together? what if they had both come to realise they enjoyed the community that adopting an unashamedly trans presentation could offer - and what if that helped them connect with each other in turn?
the idea that someone could want to be visibly trans when they have an option not to be is one i think is definitely possible in any universe! we're all on the journey that is life; people who are openly trans and don't equate their happiness with approximation to cisness are honouring the transitive nature of our existence in a special way that i think is really important to celebrate.
this fic made an impact that i couldn't've anticipated. it isn't among my most well-known stories, but those who did read it seemed to enjoy the concept that crowley and aziraphale might only be able to connect sexually once they had figured out their favourite ways to present (something that is true of humans, but isn't often explored with regard to immortal beings like our ineffables).
i was really touched that people connected with this idea because it felt quite vulnerable to write a story like this as a trans person myself. i had written a trans character before, and that had felt vulnerable too (in a different way as it was a human au), but i felt as if i was putting myself out there a little bit more with this one since i knew that, with canon settings, it can be difficult for people to read something out of their gender configuration comfort zone.
i was also really honoured that @outrageousring5655 liked the fic enough to record it as a podfic! it took the fic into a new form and gave it a new life which i loved.
i consider this fic to be a departure from my usual style in various ways, and i'm glad i committed to writing a 5k oneshot with a concrete beginning, middle and end (something i hadn't really done before at the time in that word limit!). it was a challenge i enjoyed. i reread it recently and there's a lot i would do differently if i wrote it now, but that's more with regards to style than story.
it would be amazing to explore more ideas about crowley and aziraphale interacting directly with the distinctly human concept of transness, and the community around that.
here are the details if you're interested in reading: