also think about crowley saving aziraphale throughout history and it’s just a thing that aziraphale allows to happen repeatedly and and crowley’s role on earth really runs a lot more toward the angel-saving business with a side of wiling than the other way around, except that when it really matters, the time it really matters, the end of the world, aziraphale won’t let him. aziraphale rejects him. crowley is begging aziraphale to let him save him and aziraphale says no, and crowley goes back again to beg again and aziraphale says no, and then crowley goes back a third time, full up with desperation because hell is here they are already here we have to go now, he gets to the bookshop to beg with aziraphale a third time, and the bookshop is on fire. aziraphale is gone.
it’s not just that somebody killed his best friend. it’s that for the first time ever, crowley didn’t save aziraphale. it’s that hell came for them–crowley doesn’t know that heaven came too. crowley thinks aziraphale was killed by hell because of who and what crowley is, right after aziraphale forgives him for that. right after aziraphale refuses to let crowley save him from that.
in that moment, somebody didn’t kill crowley’s best friend. crowley did.