lighter than a feather
title: lighter than a feather
pairing: ken/hongbin
genre: ancient egypt au
rating: G
wordcount: ~650
a/n: humanities class makes me think things. also i know i skipped over certain parts related to the passage to the afterlife but eehh too lazy to care.
jaehwan walks lightly, feet feeling as though they’re barely touching the floor. he’s indescribably nervous and doesn’t know why, empty chest pounding wildly as if his heart were still encased in it. he realizes as he glances around that he can’t see anything except the head of the jackal in front of him, belonging to his guide, anubis. his footsteps quicken.
“how much farther?” his voice echoes even though his mouth hasn’t moved.
anubis’s eyes flit back at him. “a little more,” he barks.
in a matter of seconds, a large stone entrance comes into view. jaehwan feels his throat tighten and his palms begin to sweat. it’s so close, he can already feel the gaze of the god of the underworld scrutinizing him like hot beams of sunlight beating against his skin.
“push the door open.” the guide instructs.
jaehwan hesitates, his thoughts a jumbled mess of worries that might not even come to pass, but only for a brief moment and he steps forward. his fingers hardly even the brush the surface of the stone before it swings from its position, opening into an enormous chamber. the chamber stretches as far he can see, no walls; an endless span of white.
“welcome,” a deep voice booms, startling jaehwan. it appears to have come from nowhere but then he sees it: a golden throne materializing in front of him, and the most beautiful being he’s ever seen seated upon it.
locks of hair the color of tree bark illuminated by the morning light, and eyes the brightest, most vibrant blue, as if the sun itself shone its rays against the waves of the deepest ocean.
“i am hongbin, god of the underworld, as you may know me.”
and jaehwan feels as though he does know hongbin. there’s an unbearable ache in his chest and his mind goes fuzzy with the reverberations of hongbin’s voice. jaehwan had never known of love in the living realm, but he thinks if he had, this would be what it feels like.
“come forward, jaehwan. a test has been prepared.”
jaehwan watches as a scale emerges from the white floor with a silvery feather balanced on one side. anubis approaches the scale, jaehwan’s heart clutched in his hands. “if your heart is lighter than the feather of maat, if you have committed no sin and you are pure of spirit, then you have passed the test.” hongbin says, gesturing to the feather.
“however, if you are guilty of sin, if you lived a life of cruelty or blackened your soul in any way, then your crossing into the afterlife is forfeit and your heart will be eaten by ammit.” jaehwan notices the demon where she sits at the base of the scale, crocodile teeth chattering while she watches anubis place the heart on the scale.
jaehwan stares intently at the scale with bated breath while it judges his heart against the forces of the goddess of truth. he remembers his parents, his grandparents, even his great grandparents telling him of this trial. “make sure your heart is pure,” they told him. he tries to think of any and all crimes he could have committed in his life but comes up blank.
when his heart slowly inches above the feather, signifying his passing the test, jaehwan feels as though his chest has also become lighter. ammit slinks away into the white and anubis lifts the heart off the scale, returning it to jaehwan.
“congratulations,” hongbin announces, a smile blooming on his elegant lips. “you are free to cross over.” the god stands from his throne, spreading his arms and beckoning for jaehwan to come closer. jaehwan returns the smile and rushes toward him, relief, gratitude, and affection swelling in his veins as he feels hongbin embrace him.
“i’m so glad,” hongbin murmurs, face buried in the crook of jaehwan’s neck. “i’ve been waiting for you...”
“i know,” jaehwan replies softly.
pairing: ken/hongbin
genre: ancient egypt au
rating: G
wordcount: ~650
a/n: humanities class makes me think things. also i know i skipped over certain parts related to the passage to the afterlife but eehh too lazy to care.
jaehwan walks lightly, feet feeling as though they’re barely touching the floor. he’s indescribably nervous and doesn’t know why, empty chest pounding wildly as if his heart were still encased in it. he realizes as he glances around that he can’t see anything except the head of the jackal in front of him, belonging to his guide, anubis. his footsteps quicken.
“how much farther?” his voice echoes even though his mouth hasn’t moved.
anubis’s eyes flit back at him. “a little more,” he barks.
in a matter of seconds, a large stone entrance comes into view. jaehwan feels his throat tighten and his palms begin to sweat. it’s so close, he can already feel the gaze of the god of the underworld scrutinizing him like hot beams of sunlight beating against his skin.
“push the door open.” the guide instructs.
jaehwan hesitates, his thoughts a jumbled mess of worries that might not even come to pass, but only for a brief moment and he steps forward. his fingers hardly even the brush the surface of the stone before it swings from its position, opening into an enormous chamber. the chamber stretches as far he can see, no walls; an endless span of white.
“welcome,” a deep voice booms, startling jaehwan. it appears to have come from nowhere but then he sees it: a golden throne materializing in front of him, and the most beautiful being he’s ever seen seated upon it.
locks of hair the color of tree bark illuminated by the morning light, and eyes the brightest, most vibrant blue, as if the sun itself shone its rays against the waves of the deepest ocean.
“i am hongbin, god of the underworld, as you may know me.”
and jaehwan feels as though he does know hongbin. there’s an unbearable ache in his chest and his mind goes fuzzy with the reverberations of hongbin’s voice. jaehwan had never known of love in the living realm, but he thinks if he had, this would be what it feels like.
“come forward, jaehwan. a test has been prepared.”
jaehwan watches as a scale emerges from the white floor with a silvery feather balanced on one side. anubis approaches the scale, jaehwan’s heart clutched in his hands. “if your heart is lighter than the feather of maat, if you have committed no sin and you are pure of spirit, then you have passed the test.” hongbin says, gesturing to the feather.
“however, if you are guilty of sin, if you lived a life of cruelty or blackened your soul in any way, then your crossing into the afterlife is forfeit and your heart will be eaten by ammit.” jaehwan notices the demon where she sits at the base of the scale, crocodile teeth chattering while she watches anubis place the heart on the scale.
jaehwan stares intently at the scale with bated breath while it judges his heart against the forces of the goddess of truth. he remembers his parents, his grandparents, even his great grandparents telling him of this trial. “make sure your heart is pure,” they told him. he tries to think of any and all crimes he could have committed in his life but comes up blank.
when his heart slowly inches above the feather, signifying his passing the test, jaehwan feels as though his chest has also become lighter. ammit slinks away into the white and anubis lifts the heart off the scale, returning it to jaehwan.
“congratulations,” hongbin announces, a smile blooming on his elegant lips. “you are free to cross over.” the god stands from his throne, spreading his arms and beckoning for jaehwan to come closer. jaehwan returns the smile and rushes toward him, relief, gratitude, and affection swelling in his veins as he feels hongbin embrace him.
“i’m so glad,” hongbin murmurs, face buried in the crook of jaehwan’s neck. “i’ve been waiting for you...”
“i know,” jaehwan replies softly.