Headed by a Snake

Elle sat up, flinging her fluffy covers away. She was clearly unhappy with Hero Ravidius.

"But you could have just... made me move!" She whined, "Or- or... push me out of the way? WHY then, did you make me do that weird dance?"

A dance? That caught Tycondrius' attention.

"Ze very specific dance-like movements were to disable ze trap in Room 18," Ravidius explained. "Had you failed to do so... ze Gold-Rank Eye Tyrant statues would have animated and turned your bones to gelatin!"

Tycon raised his hand, "I would like to see this dance."

"Th... that," Elle turned away, blushing furiously, "that's not gonna happen..."

Tycon turned back to Ravidius, "Tell me of this dance."

"It's very... cute?" The lion paused in thought... "Allow me to show you but one of ze... techniques."

Sticking his leg out, Ravidius performed a quick pirouette, stopping with his rear slightly extended. Then, he placed the back of his wrists against his forehead and flipped his palms up, "Nya~"

"That is NOT what I had to do!!" Elle screamed-- at the top of her lungs... with Tycon directly adjacent.

"Must you, Elle?" He asked. "Ravidius, are you making up dance moves or are you inept at show-and-tell?"

"You dare?" Ravidius lifted his chin in an ignoble sneer... and then his gem-bladed spear, "⌈Control!!⌋"

Elle got out of bed.

She did the dance.

Tycon judged it a... 10 out of 10. However, he was incredibly biased in Elle's favor.

"That wasn't so terrible, now was it?" Tycon smiled warmly, "If anything, I think I've fallen even deeper in love, my dear."

Elle performed a standing flip, completing it with perfect balance before sharply raising her arms at 45 degree angles.

"I'm doing this AGAINST MY WILL!!!" She shouted.

"...Oh. Right," Tycon nudged Ravidius. "Stop that. Free will is an inviolable right... even if the humor value is immeasurably high. Gatekeeper's Laws."

"Pardon, Mademoiselle," Ravidius lowered his head as he dispelled the effect. "My honor was at stake. Besides all matters of wine, each heir to the Orion family is trained to become masters of... ze game of charades."

Free of her control spell, Elle crossed her arms and glared, "Tychon... he... he made me do more..."

"But of course," Ravidius cleared his throat, "What I made you do was to prevent ze Silence Slimes from swarming down Corridor 15-B. Zhey rove in packs of ten and are most terrible to herd, as they secrete a severe hallucinogenic."

"Silence Slimes?" Tycon asked, eyeing Ravidius suspiciously... "How does one herd a gaggle of barely sentient slimes, to begin with?"

"Charades, mon ami," Ravidius answered-- quite seriously.

"...Granted."

"TYCHON!!" Elle was on the verge of tears, "He... he made me... sing!"

Dancing... and singing?

Tycon was growing tired of being suspicious of their host. While the act of temporarily removing Elle's control of her own body was morally and ethically questionable, the fact remained that she was safely removed from the Dungeon-proper.

"Elle..." He clicked his tongue, "*I've* never heard you sing before..."

"Oy," She frowned. "Whose side are you on?"

"My own," Tycon smirked.

"She's quite good," Ravidius assured him.

"'Tis a pleasure I have yet to experience for myself," Tycon rolled his eyes.

Ravidius gestured with his staff, "Zhen perhaps...?"

"No," Tycon shook his head, "but thank you."

"Guhhhh..." Elle groaned, "Okay. Fine. So the Hero of Passage took control of my body to save me from all the deadly traps. I get it. Why DO you have those traps installed, anyroad?"

Ravidius loosed a heavy sigh, allowing his shoulders to drop... "I inherited ze Dungeon and its upkeep upon purchasing ze lease. In my free time over ze past decade, I 'ave been dismantling ze traps... but, it 'as been a-- how you say... meow-numental task."

Tycon squeezed his lover's hand, "Elle, Centurion Ravidius is a rather reasonable gentleman. Would it be possible for you to forgive him?"

Elle snatched her hands away, hiding them behind her back... "It was really embarrassing, y'know."

"Do not fret, Mademoiselle," Ravidius' voice boomed. "You are safe, meow."

"Is he going to keep doing that?" Elle narrowed her eyes, "I'm not going to forgive him if he keeps doing that."

Tycon turned up to meet her gaze, "Once you're ready, get changed into your armor. We'll accompany Ravidius back into the Dungeon to seek out our other companions."

...

⁆ Captain's Log, Date XXXX. ⁅

⁆ So there I was... deep in the Tree God's Forest. ⁅

⁆ F*ck this place. ⁅

⁆ That is all. ⁅

"Alright! S'been long enough," Krysaos sat up on his knees. "You good to go, Mina?"

Mina reactivated her levitation spell, rising a few ilms off the ground.

"My mana has regenerated enough to continue, but..." She crossed her arms, rubbing at her elbow, "we must be very careful from here on to prevent you from further injury."

"Sounds like a plan..." Krysaos nodded absentmindedly.

"What about you, Master?" Mina tilted her head, "We can rest a bit longer, if you'd like..."

Krysaos put on a grin of confidence, "And miss all the fun? No way."

"Alright..." Mina chuckled softly, wiping the last of the tears on her face... "I believe in you... Krysaos."

Krysaos shut his eyes and nodded... satisfied that his act had managed to fool her.

In truth-- he felt like shite.

He wasn't lying when he told Mina he was suffering potion sickness. His head was light and airy, and it was hard to focus. His stomach was empty to the point of feeling nauseous.

...but it would be alright.

He wasn't feeling so confident before their little talk... but when he badgered his pushover sword-- she more or less admitted that she was holding back on Tycon's orders.

...which was something Krysaos expected.

He wasn't mad at the LT. If anything, he was mad at himself for not figuring it out sooner.

Mina was a good girl. She'd never let him get hurt-- not if she could help it.

But knowing that, Krysaos had a safety net-- and a damn good one. As an added bonus, that said net had both a super powerful magic tiara and a vested interest in keeping him alive.

He didn't have to be deathly afraid of the trap path.

He only had to be... normally afraid.

",