For the first third or fourth of the struggle, Zirafell begins to piece together a perhaps less-than-modest idea of what exactly the angel is attempting to ask him. He does kick himself a little for it, thinking perhaps that's an entirely erroneous read of the situation. Which it, in fact, is, but not the way he initially expects.

There's a rather specific moment when the realization hits him (which Crowley could have seen, if he had not been paying so much attention to the ceiling), although it results in more of a freezing of his features than anything entirely bombastic. Not yet, anyway.

"I..." A placeholder sound, more than a word, or a someone. His mind is still lagging behind a few steps. But it does catch up eventually.

"What are you asking me, Crowley?"

Not to offend the great effort in clarity, but some things are worth saying again. Specially things of such a nature as the thing he suspects may possibly theoretically be the answer.