The Captive Prince (o/o) closed

(Omggg yes!! Maybe Johan and Levi are accidentally left alone during dinner(?) together and Johan somehow gets a hold of a knife)

Levi grinned and brightly nudged him back, “You’re welcome, I’m glad I could help. Hah! After only a few hours with Mordecai I can give good advice too, now,” he chuckled. His gaze passed over the room of people, searching for the people he knew. He was almost certain Marya should be attending unless something else required her attention. Had she even heard about his return? “Ah, There! That’s Marya. Who I’m supposed to be engaged to.” He gestured to the entrance of the ballroom, to a woman with long dark hair pulled into a half braid, and a long sleeved dress with a fur collar. Not unlike what many of the other ladies in the room wore for an event like this.

(Lmao!!
Levi: Noo!)

Johan’s gaze seemed to be pulled towards Marya as well. He craned his neck to see around the crowd, but sat back in his chair with a sigh when she disappeared among the other nobles.

“I’m sure our engagement was postponed when they found my dead body. I would be surprised if she wasn’t arranged with someone else already,” Levi replied. A part of him wondered if she had been arranged with Johan. He couldn’t imagine the two of them together. “I can’t wait for you two to meet, I think you’ll like her.”

(Lolol)

Levi laughed along, “I’m glad that our engagement was postponed, but if she were to be engaged with anyone else it would be my brother. And that would just be another complication I’d have to deal with.” He couldn’t wait to catch up with the rest of his friends, to see their reactions to his return and introduce them to Fiori. “It’s almost seven,” he exhaled, glancing over at the clock.

Levi took in another breath of mental preparation. He was confident everything was ready for the ceremony to happen, but it would start just as fast as it would end. He wasn’t positive he was really ready for either. “I can never thank you enough, Fiori,” he smiled. Almost everything would be back to normal, at least. “I’ve never cut Widonian hair before. At least not as short as this.”

Levi closed his eyes to let Fiori’s words sink in. He nodded, felt his cheeks lift into a smile, and stepped forward to address the room. Careful not to spill the contents, he lifted the golden cup from the table and tapped it with a teaspoon, metal against metal, to cut through the quiet roar of conversation. “Good evening everyone,” he began, “I’m sure you are all confused about this impromptu gathering, especially because the one who is hosting it, is supposed to be buried. And yet, I am alive.” He paused for the audience’s reactions, and his gaze fell on Marya, whose eyes widened at the sight of her friend.

The priest stood off to the side while he waited for the actual ceremony to begin. He would strip Johan of his regency, and offer it to Leviticus in a matter of moments.

With the feeling of support backing him up, Levi continued when the room seemed to quiet down again. “Despite what you were told by Johannan, I was not assassinated by Usigens, rather two Usigen slavers abducted me from the castle and brought me to Usige.” Earlier had considered telling the public about being presented to Fiori as a ‘gift’, but he ultimately decided against it. “All of this was orchestrated by none other than Johannan, my brother.” He paused again for reactions. “Fortunately, however, I met a good man by the name of Fiori,” conveniently omitting his last name for fear that his audience might immediately dislike the prince of Usige residing in their home, “delivered me from my fate and escorted me safely back home to you. My friends and family.”

Johan hardened his expression into stoicism, yet meeting each of the glares with one of his own.

“I am unhurt, and I’ve returned to take my place as the Prince Regent. Johannan will not go unpunished,” Levi added, “I’ve decided to strip him of his current rank, and all of his titles. This evening I will cut his hair to that of a peasant’s, and he won’t have any agency of his own. I am giving him over to a master to be a slave, as he did to me not even a full month ago.” He guessed that this decision would be the most controversial. Nord Widona prided themselves in the fact that even the royals refrained from owning slaves.

Levi remained quiet as the guards regained the peace. He glanced to the side to see Johan, who was sitting coolly with a small smile on his lips, seeming quite content with the adverse reaction most of the audience displayed.

Once the crowd was quieted Levi resumed speaking. “His master will be my friend, Fiori.” He expected the next response to be even worse than the previous. Not only would Johan be a slave in Nord Widona, he would be a slave to a foreigner.

Levi swallowed, cleared just throat, before speaking again. “Now that the truth is out, and I’ve explained the details of Johannan’s retribution, we shall move forward with the ceremony.” He dipped his head in the priest’s direction. A prince or prince regent had no power to officially install or revoke royal titles such as this one. Only a priest or a king had the authority to carry out the ceremony.
To strip the rank of a regent, and of a prince, the process was essential the reverse of an installation. Speak over the recipient with a lit candle in hand, in the name of Ialdir, revoking each of his titles, extinguish the candle. Only then could Leviticus begin to cut his hair.

Leviticus shifted to Fiori’s side and murmured, “Do you still have the shears?”

With each title stripped of him, Johan seemed to shrink into himself. He kept his eyes closed tightly as if the words caused physical pain. By the time the priest was finished, his head was hanging forward between his shoulders.

Thank you,” Levi whispered back with a small smile at Fiori’s wordless praise. His gaze fell to Johan as his rights were stripped. A part of him felt bad for Johan, but it only lasted a moment when he remembered what Johan had done. When the priest nodded to him, he straightened his shoulders and approached Johan’s chair.

Levi positioned himself behind Johan, taking his brother’s hair in his hands. He opened the shears around the top of the braid, and after a moment of gathering himself, he began cutting. It took much more work, and a lot more time than he had anticipated. He caught his lip between his teeth. Shreds of Johan’s hair fell to the ground as Levi went on.

Johan opened his eyes when he felt the braid detach from his head. He looked as if he were on the verge of tears, eyes glossy and face bright red. Clutching the fabric of his shirt, he looked over to his braid, set aside on the table to his left. His head felt lighter, and his neck suddenly cold. Bare.

Johan shut his eyes tight again when his gaze began to blur, and he couldn’t stand the audience looking back at him. Not when he was now below them. His whole life has been spent tending to his hair. It was one of the basic things he learned as a child so he could show his prestige, his esteem, his very sense of self. And now it was lying like waste beside him.

By the time Levi was done attempting to make Johan’s hair look as decent as possible, it barely reached to the nape of his neck, and small bits of piled around Levi’s feet. Levi finally lowered the shears, eyeing over his work one last time. It didn’t look the best, but Fiori had said he would fix it up later.

Johan nodded absently, glazed eyes traveling over to Fiori. He looked nothing like a prince. Short strands of hair sticking up everywhere, bruises seemed even more colorful than before.

Levi was thoroughly distracted with talking to the nobles, putting on a friendly face and maneuvering around their many questions. He looked over their shoulders in search for his friends. Even Mordecai seemed to have disappeared in the crowd.

“I just need to get out of here,” Johan answered flatly. He wasn’t completely certain he could stand up from his chair. As much as he didn’t like the idea of being carried, he knew he would have to be in order to get back to his rooms. Well, Fiori’s rooms.

“Leviticus.” Mordecai grabbed Levi’s shoulder, “How are you doing?” He raised eyebrows with concern. Levi looked okay, but he always had a talent for putting on a face among these Widonian nobles.

Levi was about to answer his beloved when he swiveled his head around at the sound of his name. “Hm? Oh, of course, you need to rest,” he quickly agreed. “And yes, I’ll meet you there as soon as I can.” He uncurled his hand from Mordecai’s palm, and re-intertwined their fingers. “It looks like Johan is quite exhausted,” he noted the strange sight of his brother relying on someone to carry him.