Levi witnesses Evie projecting her consciousness from her body. Where will this lead for these two individuals that share a tumultuous past?
Posted: Fri Sep 05, 2025 6:35 am
talking★thinking
Sometimes his days felt similar to fighting a hydra – the moment some situation or debacle was over and done with, an equally insane or worse one showed up in its place. For instance, the never-ending ******** that was Utopia Academy - Levi thought the teambuilding art project he had to endure on his first week there went next to nowhere. Well, mostly. It had a silver lining, if one could call the talk he had with Evelyn one. But then the Gods laughed and said “hold my mead” and turned the place into a damned warzone a month later. One would think that’d be what rattled his bones most that morning. Oh no. The woman known as Gwen Tonnerre took that honor with her familiarity to his dead twin. Though even if she hadn’t, she seemed to be a fright all on her own…
But this wasn’t Utopia, and he didn’t have to go back until the appointed day and time. And unless he needed to tend to his Duchy or take care of some other official duties that came with his title while back in Phronese, he was clocked out. Off the work grid. On personal time, and he would do as he damn well pleased until then. Next stop was his Duchy, starting once he was finished with his cigarette. The long morning and fatigue that came with court business was taking hold of his mind and body. Levi was noticing that some members of court were beginning to notice his deliberate absence from court life, which was amusing because that meant it took them literal years to pick up on it. He didn’t dodge official business, only the unofficial bullshit like balls and soirees he used to have more tolerance for.
But a festival? Those he could still find enjoyment in. The one being held outside the palace grounds was smaller due to the winter weather but nonetheless bustling with a mix of locals, tourists, and other visitors from across the kingdom. Enorasi - a celebration held to honor lost and fallen purveyors of knowledge and culture, named after the philosopher that made the capital their home over nearly two millennia ago, Levi remembered. In his time Enorasi’s teachings were viewed as a danger to the youth and as a result condemned to death. The festival came some centuries later. It was an interesting bit of knowledge but it wasn’t an area Levi dabbled in voluntarily. The chariot races for the afternoon were called off but a lot of the athletic contests still went on, so he was happy to have been able to catch a few of them.
The sun was starting to sag in the sky and he stared out in front of him, trying to find the furthest point he could make out while taking a drag of his cigarette. It was a habit he didn’t intend to pick up but did anyways after that one music class, and one that slowed down the waves of anxiety that threatened to come in at full force sometimes. Levi saw someone he knew, and had he not been wearing a hat and sunglasses he had not a doubt in his mind they would have approached him. He’d gone the past couple of hours feeling invisible enough that, up until that point, he wasn’t looking over his shoulder so often. Once he had his small bag of goods he walked out of the stoa where the vendor booths were and to one side so that he could light up in peace. He remembered how his brother smoked and how moronic he looked when he showed off his smoke tricks. Usually for attention and praise or to show off to a girl. Like everything else, he didn’t miss that or how he deliberately blew it into people’s faces either.
He blew the smoke out like any other normal-a** person and replayed the route he took to get to that area of the festival. Getting to the carriages was simply walking the same path in the opposite direction. Levi pulled the cigarette back up to his lips just as he saw another familiar form, this one slightly taller with dark hair and one he felt ambivalent about most of the time.
OOC:
▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄▄▄ ʟᴏᴄᴀᴛɪᴏɴ: Phronese - festival outside royal grounds ★ᴍʏ ᴄᴏᴍᴘᴀɴʏ: none ★ᴍᴇɴᴛɪᴏɴꜱ: Gwen ᴀʟʟ ᴅʀᴇꜱꜱᴇᴅ ᴜᴘ:jeans, hoodie, sneakers , beanie, sunglasses★ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛꜱ: 'and my day was going so well...'
She didn’t necessarily want to come home, in fact, she did everything in her power to avoid it. Every time she found herself back in Phronese, her parents bombarded her with possible suitors. Evie knew one day, hopefully in the far, far future, that reality would be here and she would then have to deal with a man for the rest of her life. But, for now, she continued with the same excuse. She should be more educated of course, how embarrassing would it be for the family if she were to be married off, and they were to learn she still had trouble with reading and writing. Her time at the Academy was important! It could polish her into something suitable. Blah blah blah. Those excuses kept them off her back, and away from the truth.
Slowly she walked through the festival, weaving past stalls of sweets and trinkets, the air thick with the smell cooked meats. She should have been with the King and Queen, sitting through another round of dull conversation about neighboring alliances, but she narrowly escaped after their morning meal. Claimed she was going to meet up with her tutor. But really, she just needed to get some fresh air. Some distance from the palace walls that felt like they were closing in. In a few days she would be able to go back to the Academy, back to her small corner of freedom. She just needed to be patient. The belltower chimed in the distance, catching her attention. It was time for the discus throw which was one of her favorite events. Many may have found it boring, but it took a special type of strength to toss the weight as far as they could. Evie thought it was impressive.
She made her way over to the field, pulled her hoodie over her head, and kept her distance. Unwilling to allow herself to be noticed. If she did, they would make a spectacle of it, and she really, really didn’t want that attention on herself. The first man came out, he was rather scrawny, but there was a seriousness behind his expression that piqued Evie’s curiosity. Following behind him was a man much larger than the boy. Seriously, his hand was larger than the smaller one’s head. Evie shifted on her feet, then leaned up against a woodened pole, a faint grin already tugging at her lips. This was going to be interesting. The large one looked cocky, like this was about to be the easiest contest he’d ever been in. While the other one was calm, and quiet. She loved an underdog, and she had a feeling this guy was going to be stronger than he looked.
And she was right. He spun once, twice, and on the third the discus whistled through the air about seventy-three meters before slamming hard on the ground. Evie straightened up- that was one of the furthest throws she had ever witnessed! The larger man’s confidence faltered before everyones eyes as he slowly leaned over to grab his weight. To his surprise, and most of the crowds, his discus only flew a short forty-one meters. Evie couldn’t contain her excitement, she clapped her hands and cheered along with the rest of the audience. This was why she loved the sport. One didn’t have to be a hulking giant to win. Sometimes, the quiet ones did it better.
The scrawny one went again for his second attempt and once more, blew the giant out of the water. Sadly, she could not stay to watch him win, because when the third attempt started, her eyes caught the gaze of one of the townsfolk. They took a second glance, and Evie knew that it was time to take her leave before they truly recognized her and word spread. She slipped away quickly, and headed out from the festival, taking a path just outside some of the tents. The sound of laughter began to fade behind her, replaced by the low hum of the wind through the trees.
It wasn’t long before she started to feel a little lightheaded. Evie placed her hand against her head as her body wavered. Damn. Was this really going to happen? It had been so long since her abilities chose to disrupt her day. She had little control since the incident. Evie blinked a few times, then shakily made her way over to a tree that was a bit off the path. Out of the corner of her eye she swore she saw a man walking toward her, but she didn’t have the time to react. By the time she made it to the tree, everything went black.
OOC: NA Location: Phronese | Festival outside royal grounds Company: ??? Outfit:Wearing
Posted: Thu Nov 27, 2025 5:53 am
talking★thinking
‘Greaaaaaaatttt…’
The universe was in the habit of interrupting his smoke breaks lately, and this time it put one of the Phronesian Princesses within shouting distance. Levi’s nostrils flared slightly as he snuffed out the last of his smoke. He didn’t particularly care if she knew but he didn’t feel like speed walking with it still lit. Maybe it was a sign to stop before he started sounding raspy or like he was gargling gravel like some of those old farts back at court. Black sneakers started along the path back to the carriages and in the direction the taller Evie was walking from. With luck she wouldn’t recognize him. His disguise was by no means clever but it worked well enough that he was left alone for most of the day. Evie wasn’t stupid and he was sure she’d be able to pick him out in a crowd quicker than others though. He pulled his hood up over his head and adjusted the collar to conceal more of his ink-laden neck in hopes to avoid it. They could cross paths, go their separate ways, and she’d be none the wiser.
But then she unexpectedly moved off the path after touching her hand to her head. His gaze followed her until she disappeared behind a tree. “What the…” he muttered.
‘Well, there goes my plan.’ For all he knew it could be nothing, but if he ignored what he just saw and continued on his merry way, and she ended up ill or worse as a result, Levi knew he would lose sleep over it. Once he was closer to where she turned off, he went in the same direction. The sight of her foot sticking out from behind a tree caught his eye. Maybe it wasn’t nothing, then? Or she was waiting for someone? But who would she be waiting on in a wooded area just as night was moving in? A secret lover? Her dealer?
He rounded the tree with slower steps and stopped when he was right in front of her. Yeah, it was Evelyn Nous alright. Except her eyes were closed like she was asleep or knocked out, or something. There was an uneasy feeling in his stomach. He hoped she was just making the poor decision to nap in the woods and nothing more. If it were anything else… well, he just hoped it wasn’t that.
Levi pulled off his sunglasses and called out to her with a sharp whisper. “Evelyn.” There was no response. No eye fluttering, no groan, not a damn thing. Again her name was called but more harshly in hopes it would rouse the princess. No dice. She remained still and leaned against the tree.
He crouched down so that he was at eye level with her and extended his arm to snap in her ear a few times. “Hey, yo! Princess… time to wake up!” Gods, he hoped she wasn’t the type to wake up swinging. Levi watched as once again, she was unresponsive. His brows pulled together and he looked at her with mild alarm. “Did this girl just die…?” Levi fixed his sights firmly on the notch between her collar bones — cause like hell he was going to let himself be accused of staring just south of that — and watched that spot for several intense heartbeats. There was a rise and fall in her chest and Levi let out the breath he was holding.
She was alive. That was a good sign. At least if he were charged with a crime, it wouldn’t be murder and he wouldn’t enter the new year behind bars or swinging by his neck. With it being Evelyn and all, he knew it would be a hard felt loss for both her family and the Kingdom. She had some brush with death a few years back too, he remembered, and she didn’t need to go out after what it took to get to where she was now.
What came next had him promptly falling on his a** with a sudden fright. His hands kept him from hitting the ground entirely and the hood over head fell to his neck. There was another Evie in sight, this one seemingly conscious but opalescent in appearance. He could see the trees right through her! “WHAT IN THE SEVEN ********> He demanded. Levi looked back at the unconscious brunette by the tree then back at the ghoulish form with wide eyes. He could have sworn he saw her breathing just a second ago. A quick replay of it from his memory confirmed just that. Did she really just die then?! He blinked up at her slowly, his voice speechless from whatever the hell this trippy phenomenon was.
OOC:
▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄▄▄ ʟᴏᴄᴀᴛɪᴏɴ: Phronese - just off the path ★ᴍʏ ᴄᴏᴍᴘᴀɴʏ: Evelyn ★ᴍᴇɴᴛɪᴏɴꜱ: none ᴀʟʟ ᴅʀᴇꜱꜱᴇᴅ ᴜᴘ:jeans, hoodie, sneakers , beanie, sunglasses★ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛꜱ:nothing, nada, zip
The man she saw approaching her, turned out to be Levi. Great. Evie watched as he crouched next to her and began snapping his fingers in her face, sharp little noises meant to pull her back to reality. All she could do was sigh. Well, [i[she sighed, the projection of herself, anyway. Her physical body remained slumped and unmoving at the base of the tree, head lolled slightly to the side, lashes resting too peacefully against her cheeks for how wrong the situation actually was.
She supposed she should say something, anything really to let him know she was still there, that she hadn’t slipped off somewhere he couldn’t follow. But he hadn’t noticed her yet, not the standing, breathing version of her at least, arms crossed loosely over her chest, weight settled into one hip. And honestly? It was kind of entertaining watching him panic. Her head tilted as she studied him, eyes narrowing with mild curiosity. He seemed… intensely focused on her neck. Or was it her collarbones? ’What a weird guy…’ She lingered there, watching him watch her body. Alright, that was probably enough. Any longer and he might actually do something stupid… like shake her.
“So…” Evie finally said, voice light, almost bored, “What’re you looking at?”
“WHAT IN THE SEVEN ******** puffed her cheeks out immediately, biting down hard on a snort. Oh, he lost it. Full body flinch, scrambling back on his hands. Wow, she hadn’t realized he scared that easily. That was… useful information, she’d absolutely be storing that away for later. She blinked at him innocently, “Is that me?” She asked, glancing back at her own unconscious body, then down at herself. “Did you kill me, Levi?!” Her hand flew to her chest, “How could you?!” Why stop now? She went all in. Her voice wobbled theatrically as tears, convincing ones that she was quite proud of, welled in her eyes. She dropped to her knees dramatically, and reached forward, swiping her hand through her physical body again and again like she was trying to grab hold of herself and failing.
“Oh gods,” Evie sobbed pitifully, “I’m dead… I knew it. I knew trusting you would get me killed one day.” Then she froze, and slowly, Evie lifted her head and stared at him. Wide-eyed, blank… expressionless. Her hands rose at her sides, fingers curling before she started wiggling them toward him, her voice dropped into an exaggerated whisper. “OooOOOooo… I will haunt you forever, Levi… OooOoO…” She held that for a moment, then her lips twitched, and curved, and she finally broke, laughter spilling out of her in soft, breathy bursts as she straightened up again. Between laughs, she wiped at her eyes, “Do you seriously not remember that this happens?” Evie tilted her head, studying his face now instead, she wouldn’t have been surprised if he didn’t remember. He’d been half asleep when she’d visited him after the incident, barely coherent, really.
During her coma, she drifted…a lot. She’d visited her siblings often, hovering quietly at their bedsides, listening, and quietly watching. And less frequently, there was Levi. She never chose it, it just… happened. To this day, she still didn’t know why her subconscious picked the people it did. Besides her siblings, that at least made sense. She missed them. But she hated Levi. So why?
Her amusement faded as she turned back toward her body. The laughter slipped away, replaced by a heavier feeling, “I can’t get back,” Her voice fell, the words felt worse out loud. Her gaze lingered on her own still form, jaw tightening. “For some reason,” She added, somehow even softer, “I haven’t been sleeping well, and…” Evie shook her head sharply, cutting herself off. Why the ******** was she telling him that? She straightened, shoulders squaring like she could physically brace herself against the situation. She didn’t need sympathy, and she didn’t need understanding. She needed help. “I need you to move me inside,” Her eyes lifted to his again, serious now, unguarded in a way she hated, “I need time to figure out what to do, and no one can find me like this.”
Then, because she was still her, the corner of her lip twitched into a faint smirk, “I mean, if you almost pissed yourself,” She gestured toward the distant sounds of the festival, “I can’t imagine how they’d react.” She stepped closer to him, then past him, peering around the tree like she was checking for onlookers, “And if anyone spotted you with me like this? You know it wouldn’t look good for you.” An eyebrow arched as she turned back to him. She needed to calm down, if she could. She needed to meditate somewhere quiet, so she might be able to fix this. But she needed him, unfortunately. Evie needed him to move her, then… to stay. Because like this? She was completely defenseless.
She’d had nightmares about this exact scenario, watching from afar while something terrible happened, unable to intervene, unable to scream. Her voice softened despite herself, “Please, Levi.”
OOC: NA Location: Phronese | Festival outside royal grounds Company: Levi Outfit:Wearing
Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2026 9:28 pm
talking★thinking
He’d seen a ghost. A literal ghost.
Or, at least what he thought was a ghost. Turquoise eyes darted between Evie’s ethereal form and the body up against the tree that he swore he saw breathing just before she said something. Apparently that wasn’t the case. If what she said was true, she was dead now, unalived by Gods knew what. He sat there in the dirt and grass across from her, seized with horror as the princess of Phronese fruitlessly clawed at her cooling body in the performance of a lifetime. ‘SHE’S DEAD. OH s**t, SHE’S REALLY ******** DEAD!’
Levi was going to have to abandon his duchy and Phronese and live a life on the run now. That or flee to another Kingdom. It wasn’t like he’d never considered it before. He knew a couple of languages and had a plethora of knowledge to help with finding work. That, plus some hair bleach and a couple of weeks to grow some patchy facial hair, then he could go by Gustav or something. He’d need to leave Steve with someone, maybe Mercuria or Ivan. She legit thought he killed her, and if anyone were to pass by them now, they’d get the same idea.
“OooOOOooo… I will haunt you forever, Levi… OooOoO…”
But then she broke into laughter, and Levi’s face and body started to loosen from its rigid lock. She stood up, her demeanor a complete one-eighty from pain and despair she was expressing seconds earlier. “What are you talkin’ abo– how’s this ********’ funny?!”
“Do you seriously not remember that this happens?”
Forget? He didn’t forget s**t. It didn’t sound entirely unfamiliar though. His brows furrowed and he stared straight ahead while he searched his memory for something that resembled… whatever the hell this was. As Evie suggested, this wasn’t the first time he’d seen her like this, and he found snippets where she appeared to him in a similar fashion. They were much younger though, just barely teenagers. Not to mention he was going by his proper name too, which meant if she was speaking to him as Levi….
… he internally reeled at the thought of being directly exposed to the hellscape that had to be his twin’s mind.
“I knew that.” Technically, he did. The memory was just… old and unthought of for a long time, despite being an intriguing one. What exactly was this ability of hers to appear before him while her body sat over there just drooling away in la la land? Not that he could tell from where he sat. Replaying it now raised some new questions, specifically why them? Levi straightened up and put his arms over his knees, his nervous system still recovering from the fright Evie gave him just moments ago. “So lemee get this straight, you saw me an’ decided to punk me? I thought you were dead. Dead. An’ you’re just standin’ there… kinda?!”
Even as an astral projection, he could see and hear the way her amusement melted away and revealed that this was not the case. Evie was locked out of her body and couldn’t get back in. It did sound pretty nightmarish. And now, she needed his help. His help. Echoing Evelyn over here wanted him to move her body out of sight. He gave her smirk a slow blink, his expression flat from all the excitement such a risky task could offer. She made a compelling argument though. A girl, passed out alone in the trees with someone known to have taken advantage of such situations before?
Leaving her there wasn’t an option. Levi sighed and pulled himself up to his feet. He could still get ******** over, but moving Evie somewhere else was the only option gave them both the highest chance of not being hurt or killed. And he had a feeling she probably wouldn’t have asked unless she really, really needed it. “Good timin’ on passing out at the end of this thing.” People were going home, and less people meant less trouble. Levi approached Evie’s unconscious body and pulled her up to her feet, then tucked his head under one of her arms. He hooked his own arm around her leg and pulled it in against the arm on the other side of his neck, then stood up straight. “You must weigh as much as I do.” More of an observation, not that she was too heavy for him to carry. She was an athletic gal.
Quickly he walked back toward the Stoa with Evie in tow, going between the trees instead of using the pathway they lined. He pushed the door to one of the empty shop rooms open, only stepping in when he didn’t see anyone else in there. He was sure her astral projection was following him, walking or floating or however she got around. It had to be. With both of their bodies he gently pushed the door shut, and he exhaled with some relief. Someone could come through the door, but the hardest part of this mission was over. Levi deposited her to an empty spot on the floor, sitting her up against the wall like she was against the tree.
“Ok, so what now?”
OOC:
▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄▄▄ ʟᴏᴄᴀᴛɪᴏɴ: Phronese - just off the path > Stoa room ★ᴍʏ ᴄᴏᴍᴘᴀɴʏ: Evelyn ★ᴍᴇɴᴛɪᴏɴꜱ: none ᴀʟʟ ᴅʀᴇꜱꜱᴇᴅ ᴜᴘ:jeans, hoodie, sneakers , beanie, sunglasses
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