pairing: ChenLay
length: 1492 words

Chen sighed as he led another pair of souls through the holy gates, watching as they disintegrated in the light and disappeared.

“Do you need me to swap in?”

The celestial being turned to face his fellow seraph, Lay, who was expressionless as usual. Chen shook his head as he straightened up, duly erasing any remnants of emotion from his face so that he was as unreadable as the other seraph was. “Thank you for the offer, Lay, but everything is under control here.”

The taller seraph stared at Chen, maintaining unbroken eye contact with the other celestial being for several minutes, before nodding and reaching into the right pocket of his long white robes to pull out a pocket watch that hung from a long golden chain.

Without warning, he tossed the shiny object to Chen, who let out a small yelp as he reached forward to catch the pocket watch before sending Lay a questioning look. “Is this for…?”

“I thought you might like it,” Lay cryptically said.

Chen briefly raised both eyebrows in surprise before schooling his expression back into a neutral one to match the other seraph. “Thank you, Lay. I…appreciate it.”

“I shall see you at sundown then, at our usual rendezvous point.” And before Chen could reply, the other seraph encased himself in a cocoon of white light and teleported away.

Now that he was alone again, the young seraph’s facial muscles instantly relaxed and he heaved another deep sigh before heading back to the landing point to meet his next scheduled pair of souls. As he settled on his cloud perch, sitting cross-legged, Chen held the pocket watch out in front of him and gazed at the pristine face of the clock, silently counting along as the seconds ticked by until the untimely car crash that was due to take place within the minute.

And as the clock struck nine, the pocket watch rattled in the celestial being’s thin hands and two glowing blue orbs appeared at the landing point. Chen pressed his lips together in a straight line as the orbs gradually transformed into more humanoid shapes. The seraph then slipped the golden watch into the front pocket of his robe before the orbs finished materializing and folded his hands behind his back.

It was best if the souls did not find out that Lay had set the time of their arrival just moments before.

--

Chen touched down at the entrance to the Sky Garden just as the sun began to simultaneously bleed waves of red, orange, purple, and pink. Lay was already seated at their usual table inside the massive glass dome, just behind the cluster of reddish-pink amaranth flowers that the taller seraph could usually be found tending to whenever he was at the empyrean greenhouse.

As per usual, Lay had a wooden top spinning in front of him, perfectly steady and balanced on the glass tabletop, going round and round in a perfect circle.

Chen was careful not to accidentally bump the table as he took his seat across from the other celestial being and nodded in greeting once he was comfortably situated. “Thank you for this,” the younger seraph politely stated with both hands cupping the golden pocket watch and extending them in Lay’s direction. “It was helpful to have today.”

However, Lay made no move to take the shiny object back from his colleague. “It is yours, Chen. I have no use for it now that you do.”

“I… What?” Chen couldn’t help but let his jaw slightly drop as thrums of energy suddenly began radiating from the pocket watch, permeating through his pale skin. “You mean…”

Lay nodded. “Your numbers are impressive, despite your experience. Although, considering you are my protégé, perhaps it should not come as a surprise that you have a much higher aptitude for this in comparison to others.” A small smile adorned the older seraph’s otherwise passive face, a rare occurrence in itself.

Chen continued to stare wide-eyed as the pocket watch glowed with more and more celestial energy, watching as it all wreathed around him like the chains attached to the shiny object, until the sapphire that usually hung around his neck glowed an iridescent blue that hadn’t occurred since the first time the two seraphs had met long ago.

When the young celestial being continued to silently stare at his hands, seemingly frozen in time, the smile faded from Lay’s face, back to his typical impassive state. “You seem…unsatisfied by this turn of events, Chen. Do you feel unprepared to acquire a new title?”

“N-no, that’s not it,” the younger seraph hastily replied, finally breaking eye contact from the pocket watch and lifting his head to face Lay instead. “I just… It’s…” He inhaled slowly and deeply, trying to organize his scattered thoughts, before slowly saying, “Wielding this much power… Is it…truly alright for us to be doing this?”

Instead of answering right away, Lay snapped his fingers and their surroundings transformed immediately from light to dark. Small yellow spheres of bright light suddenly appeared, dotting the area above the glass table.

“The middle plane…” Chen said, his voice just barely above an audible whisper, as he gazed at the expansive map that had holographically appeared across the tabletop.

“A balance between the living and the dead, the mortal and the immortal, must be maintained,” Lay solemnly stated as the two seraphs watched the multitudes of yellow spheres of light dance around the table. “When things become too crowded, it is our duty to tip the scales so that balance and harmony can coexist in all planes. Although we cannot directly control the decisions of those living below us in ignorance and bliss, we are still able to manipulate the natural forces that surround them.”

“And lead them to us whenever we deem fit…” Chen murmured as his gaze then switched back to the glowing pocket watch, his heart caught in his throat as he recalled the hundreds of faceless souls he had led through the golden gates. “…Lay, I—”

“It is natural to have doubts, Chen. It is humane to hesitate before such monumental changes occur. But remember,” Lay extended his hand and placed it over the pocket watch, fingers gently clasping over the younger seraph, “this is the path you chose. This is the responsibility we must bear as keepers of time. To exist beyond such limits means we must maintain the boundary for everyone else. To preserver order and peace up above.”

Chen swallowed thickly as bits and pieces of memories past flew through his mind.

Lay’s expression softened slightly as he used his other hand to cup the younger celestial being’s hands underneath, so that there was direct skin-to-skin contact between them now. “We are not the judge, jury, or executioner. We are not the thread-spinners or the weavers. We simply keep the clock running as long as it can.”

“Yet, despite being timeless, we are still bound by time itself,” Chen observed with a wry smile.

“Time never stops.” Lay lightly tapped the face of the pocket watch. “Even if a clock does, time continues moving like the tides, ever constant. That is how order and balance are maintained.”

In the background, the sound of ocean waves filled the atmosphere as the darkness gradually dissipated and the yellow spheres faded.

“You have a kind heart, Chen. It is not surprising that you are wavering at this next step.”

“I just… How have you been able to do this for so long, with no end in sight?”

Lay gently folded the younger seraph’s hands over the pocket watch while still keeping his hands clasped around them. “I cannot speak for everyone, but for me…it is the small moments in between… The time spent here in the Sky Garden…or the Cloud Tower…or at home…” The small smile reappeared on Lay’s face once more as he said, “Being here reminds me of my own humanity, if you can believe it.”

Seeing the bushels of amaranth flowers sway in the background, Chen smiled back and nodded in agreement.

“We’re not so different, you and I. It’s why I chose to take you under my wings.”

“Thank you, Lay,” Chen murmured, feeling the tips of his ears burn. “I… I think I need more time…to properly take this all in.”

Lay nodded in understanding. “Of course, I would not have expected otherwise.” As he stood up, he gestured his arms around the Sky Garden in a sweeping motion. “Let us meet here tomorrow before we join everyone else at the Cloud Tower for the autumnal equinox. I can answer any other questions you have then.”

“Thank you, Lay,” Chen repeated, holding the pocket watch close to his chest. “I’ll see you tomorrow then.”

“…Good night, Chen.” And the older seraph departed in a burst of blue light, leaving behind a single white feather where the wooden top used to be.

♈♈♈