The Ineffable Omens | A 'Good Omens' FanFic

1 | Waking Up

It was an average day. Nothing overly special about it. The temperature was at a degree that was normal for this time of year. The sky wasn't overly clear, but it wasn't really cloudy either. You could even feel the slight undertone of a breeze blowing through the air. So in short, average. Accompanied with this mild day, in the city of Soho, London, was a shopping plaza that had just about everything you could need and more, all in one place. The streets were packed, with people walking up and down the sidewalks and crosswalks; coming in and out of buildings, apologizing as they try to squeeze through the crowds and join the fray. The vehicles were moving at a pace that can only be compared to the speed of a snail maneuvering through the traffic. Despite its sudden busyness though, it was still an average day. Although it was a bit of a noisier day than usual. There were people struggling to not get themselves shoved into the streets; along with the sounds of engines trying to keep from overheating, and the occasional horn accompanied with a yelling driver every so often. With so much going on, it makes you wonder how anyone can work around all of that constant noise.
The book "seller" stares out the window behind their desk, looking up from the book they were reading, as they heard yet another honking car and a man yelling.
"That's the 3rd time that man has almost made himself into a human waffle..." they said; staring at the drunken mess of a man stumbling away from the direction of the pub just next door. The angel disguised as a human finally closes the book; putting a bookmark where they had left off, and stretching as they set the literature down gently on the desk that they've been calling their own. As Muriel, the name of that said angel, turns to grab themself a warm mug of tea, the bell at the entrance to the bookshop suddenly rings, signaling that someone has entered their shop. Hopefully not that same man, they thought; walking towards the entrance to greet their guest.
"Hi, welcome i- oh, hi Maggie!" Muriel said; getting bubbly, seeing the familiar tenant coming through the doors. Maggie smiled at the sight of a face she had gotten so used to seeing.
"Hey! I came by to drop off my rent!" Said the human, previously called Maggie. Her family has had the record shop since she was very little; maybe even longer than that. When Maggie inherited the shop she had to sell it because it wasn't doing very well. Thankfully, the person who had bought it from her knew her family and loved getting records from her shop; so she was able to keep it running. Not only that, the owner also ran the bookshop next door, so the only thing she needed to do was pop into his shop and pay her rent. Even then, the owner was VERY forgiving at times; especially when nothing was selling and she couldn't pay anything for months. They had a great connection, but suddenly, after some things had happened (that Maggie still doesn't quite understand), he vanished. No one's really seen him since the incident; and the one who was running the shop wasn't him, but it was a small and bubbly 'human being', that could only do their best. This happened a few years ago at this point; and to this day, it bothered Maggie that she didn't know where he was or what had happened to him.
"Why, thank you dear neighbor, I'll be sure Mr. Fell receives it" said the angel. For now, they placed the envelope Maggie had with the rent inside into a drawer in the desk next to Muriel.
"Great, well, I'll be off then!" Maggie turns to go back out into the mess of people, but then immediately stops and walks back towards Muriel.
"Before I go, however," Muriel brought their attention back to the human. "How, has Mr. Fell been? It's been so long since we've all seen him, it's almost like he's been wiped off the face of the earth" Maggie chuckles, wondering what had happened with the cheery man who used to come get new records from her every chance that he got.

"Oh- heh- well, h-he's doing fine. Just... under the weather is all. You know how it is." Muriel stammered, unsure of how to answer the sudden question.
Maggie sighs, her thoughts about what's going on only getting worse. "Yeah, I get it, things happen." Maggie pulls out a post card from the cross body bag she had around her, and hands it over to Muriel as well. Muriel takes it and just stares at it.
"What's all this then?" They said looking up at the slightly taller human handing the card over, taking it into their own. "It's an invitation, I need you to hand it to Mr. Fell." Maggie pulled out a permanent marker; writing something on it before officially saying her goodbyes, and leaving the shop into the busy streets. Muriel read through the post card; shrugging, and putting it with the rent money to hand over.
Muriel paused for a moment, trying to rack their brain around what they were doing before their interaction with Maggie. Muriel's face lights up, suddenly remembering that they were going to make some tea to enjoy. Angels don't need to eat or drink since they're immortals; and their souls don't require sustenance to keep them alive and energized. Because of this, Muriel doesn't actually drink tea, and instead, like to smell it. They did try to drink it once, but found it repulsive and never did it again. Sure, they COULD just get some tea scented air fresheners, but it doesn't smell the same as actual tea.
The shop was the same as it had been since Muriel started running it. At first, they had no clue how they were going to manage. But, with some tips from a close friend of the previous shop keeper, as well as Maggie and the barista across the street, Muriel has been successfully running the shop as it should be ran. Nothing is out of place, everything is organized how it was supposed to be, and everyone is living lively and normal lives. Well, as normal as they can be. Muriel grabs the whistling pot off the burner, pouring the now boiling liquid into the mug filled with tea leaves, sugar, and a splash of milk. They turn the burner off, setting the pot back on it, and taking the mug to their desk close to where they had set the book that they were previously reading before.
Looking at the watch that was lovingly gifted to them by the previous book shop owner; they suddenly jump as they realized what time it is. Sprinting to grab their bag; they shove their book into the messenger crossbody, and put on a coat for the wind that was picking up. They started rushing out of the book shop; turning the open sign to closed, and locking up behind them. After checking several times that everything was locked and secured, Muriel ran to the corner of the street, waving down a cab; and hoping right in. They told the man where to go, and the cab sped off into the direction to see the man that Muriel owed a lot of gratitude towards for his help with the bookshop, at least in the beginning.