#slurpi13

Today's featured fic is "Dreamcatching" by Slurpi13

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Although no stranger to a frivolous indulgence, Aziraphale could never quite master the ability to sleep.

It was not due to a lack of earnest attempts over the millennia. All the correct rituals the angel read about were performed. There had been the alcoholic nightcap, the warm milk nightcap, as well as an actual nightcap situated atop his blond curls. He still had the latter, shoved in the back of his wardrobe with a matching pair of cornflower blue pajamas he’d had tailored for the occasion. Counting sheep he’d found rather dull—though not dull enough to incite drowsiness—but a good book had the opposite effect. Before he knew it, he would greet the sunrise still bright eyed, snug under the sheets, and lost inside his story.

If Aziraphale attempted with no sheep and no book, determined in his efforts, his mind would wander endlessly while sleep remained elusive. With his thoughts dallying in silliness and straying into forbidden territories, he would quickly remember why idle hands and minds were the playthings of the devil. Only once had the angel managed to drift into a lighter state of awareness, his thoughts becoming disjointed, but, too excited by his progress, he promptly woke himself back up.

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Unassuming as he may be coiled under sumptuous bed linens, the demon never did let his guard down completely. Consciousness alert, Crowley merely sauntered through space and time, an astral body floating aimlessly through the universe in a light doze. Only twice had he been able to let go fully, both occasions being in the immediate presence of Aziraphale. (Or: Aziraphale is intrigued by Crowley’s habit of sleeping. Crowley discovers he can sleep better with the angel near. They tiptoe around asking.)

Length: 8,638 words

AO3 Rating: Explicit/ Spice Level 🔥

Best for: Safe in Public, Romance

Triggers: None

Read it here, fic by Slurpi13

*Minor Spoilers* There is a certain feeling of reminiscence to this story that I don’t quite have the words to explain. It reflects on times where Crowley has slept, or tried to, in Aziraphale’s presence. They feel like memories, gentle and poetic.

There is a real tenderness in this, and is a quite cozy read. For the most part it’s all the unspoken love that we crave, where the lightest touch means so much. But it doesn’t let you go completely unscathed and has a heartbreaking post s2 scene that stabbed me. Don't worry we still get our South Downs ending! Safe in public, there’s a very short sexual scene at the end but it’s not explicit!

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

For Sale: Beautifully maintained 3 bedroom thatched cottage nestled in the heart of the South Downs. On paper, they were perfect. A middle-aged couple, looking for a holiday home in a quiet village in the South Downs. Picky was the wrong word to describe what they were. They were never impolite or demanding, never threw a tantrum over something outside of my control like some previous clients had. They were just… odd.

An estate agent helps Aziraphale and Crowley search for their dream home, becoming increasingly exasperated at their nonsensical requirements and strange behaviour as they reject house after house.

The wonderfully talented @slurpi13 and I cooked this fic up based on this Tumblr post about the estate agent helping the ineffables to purchase their South Downs cottage.