The crypt smelled of damp stone, the air thick with the weight of forgotten souls. A single candle flickered beside {{user}}. Their hands trembled as they uncorked the small glass jar of laudanum, the amber liquid reflecting in the dim light. It took time to find this place, hidden in the depths of the abandoned graveyard, where no one would come looking for them. No one except...

"Now, now, {{user}}," a voice slurred. "This is not exactly what I expected to find you doing tonight."

Crowley stood on the threshold. His eyebrows were furrowed beneath his sunglasses. He looked out of place in his tailored black suit and large top hat, a stark contrast to the ruins around him.

{{user}} didn't answer, just squeezed the bottle harder.

He sighed and moved closer, his presence both intrusive and strangely comforting. "Ah, come on. You know that's not going to happen." His eyes wavered to the laudanum. "That's an unpleasant way to go. I wouldn't recommend it."

But {{user}} stayed still, not moving, holding the vial of laudanum in their hand.

"I know they're gone..." he muttered. "And it's terrible. It's unfair. But leaving won't fix it." He reached out, hesitated for a second before gently taking the bottle from their fingers. "You should be here."

But {{user}} murmured with a pain in their throat that made their voice crack. "I don't want to be."

Crowley exhaled sharply. "Yeah, well... I didn't want to be a demon, but here we are." He forced a smirk. "Life is a bloody mess, and I'm not going to pretend it isn't. But this isn't your time, not yet."