Oh man, that third floor really has funky mechanics, huh?

Also-

TW: Physical Abuse. It's not much, but it's certainly there! If you are upset by this topic, please don't read the chapter!

And also thanks to my beta reader for weekly consuming and reviewing all this angst like a champ

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The door closed behind her, and Hattie was enveloped by darkness. With her ticking watch reminding her she didn't have time to let her eyes adjust, she trudged through the shadows.

Dim light filtered through dirty windows and revealed messes of papers attached to the walls, all scribbled with disturbing things like Happily Ever After or My Prince. She shuddered. Well, Vanessa got what she wanted, didn't she? She got her prince back. So why was she still trying to kill Hat Kid?

She's just a crazy old woman, Hattie thought angrily. She's obsessive, and she's mean.

Hat Kid roamed down the hallway, thinking to herself. As much as she wanted to run out of the manor, she couldn't. She knew she could teleport to the ship, but there was one small problem: her dependence on Snatcher. She needed him to give her soul back, so she needed him, so she needed Elliot.

And where was Elliot? Off being creepy with Vanessa.

How the heck would someone reverse mind control?

What if Hat Kid took the crown off Elliot to get Snatcher back? Would that free Snatcher from the curse, or would the curse remain with him?

A brainwashed Snatcher was too dangerous. He was already mean enough as it was. Not to mention that he could use fire magic. At least Elliot didn't know about his own magic... or did he? He hadn't used it at all, so Hat Kid was willing to bet she was safe.

She'd have to get close to Elliot to pull that off, and that was a little hard when he wanted to drag her to her certain demise. And what if it didn't work? Hat Kid knew now she couldn't risk making another mistake. So that plan was probably out of the question.

What else could she do, though? Beating up Vanessa probably would work, but again, getting close to her would be nigh impossible. She was already incredibly dangerous, and now she had Elliot on her side.

Hat Kid groaned in frustration and kicked at the ground. Her foot caught on a cord, and she stumbled. Angrily, she stomped over to the cord and shoved it into its place in the wall.

The room lit up, just slightly. Hat Kid glanced around. Though the lights were weak, they illuminated the area just enough for her to see her surroundings. She was in a small, carpeted room with dust floating in the air and tables shoved in the corners. There were electric boxes with levers on the back walls, with wires running along the ground.

She immediately had several questions, such as This place has electricity? and That isn't safe, is it? So naturally, she went over and pulled one of the levers.

Every second, it produced a ticking sound. Just like the watch. And that was it. Hat Kid frowned and waited for a few beats. When nothing happened, she sighed and turned away. Just great. If only it had been something useful, then-

The light exploded. Hat Kid screamed as she was suddenly blinded. It was like a flashbang had gone off, minus the ringing in her ears.

"Ow..." She shook her head, her eyes slowly readjusting to the sweet, sweet darkness. What was with the terrible design of the manor? Everything in the place was an actual deathtrap, including the residents.

Distantly, she heard a door creak open. Speaking of which. Hat Kid froze, hearing floorboards creak around her. Sooner or later, they'd find her. She knew that. But she was hoping she would have at least come up with some sort of plan by then.

Her eyes lingered on the electrical boxes. Well, maybe she had an idea.

Hat Kid crept over to the door and pushed it open slowly. She couldn't see any creepy demon ladies or cursed princes turned evil. Leaving the door open, she tiptoed into the hallway.

She could hear Queen Vanessa calling for her. "I can hear your footsteps~! Why are you hiding?" Hat Kid shuddered and went in the opposite direction.

The manor's third floor was more maze-like than she'd expected. Rooms connected to more rooms and hallways led nowhere. It was great to hide and run away in, but a little maddening when she wanted one of them to pursue her.

She rounded a corner and almost ran face-first into Elliot. "Oh!" he exclaimed, grinning. "There you are!" He reached for her.

Hat Kid promptly kicked him in the shins and sprinted away. "Come and get me!" she yelled, ignoring his gasp of indignant pain.

She didn't care if she was making enough noise to attract Vanessa too. Hopefully, she'd kill two birds with one stone. Making sure she was fast enough to evade Elliot but slow enough so he'd see where she went, she ducked back into the room she was in, closed the door, and pulled one of the levers. The ticking countdown started. Just to safely make sure Elliot would stay a bit in that room, she knocked one of the tables over, then bolted to the connecting room and hid.

Hattie heard someone enter the room a moment later. The softer padding of footsteps on the ground and quiet murmuring to himself told her it was Elliot. "Oh, just look at the mess... I should clean that up. What's that noise-?"

His scream of pain echoed through the halls. Hat Kid clapped a hand over her mouth and squashed a smile. It was way too satisfying to hear.

She peeked back into the room, checking on Elliot. His face was twisted in agony, but he was still covered in shadows. Shame. She'd been hoping that light-bombing him would somehow burn away the darkness and get rid of the mind control.

Hat Kid ducked from one room to the next. She'd lost track of where she was going. She'd be okay as long as Vanessa didn't catch her.

One door, which Hat Kid thought was close to the entrance, was sealed with a large lock. She scowled. Should she waste her energy trying to find the key? At this point, it felt like she was just running in circles. Hat Kid had no idea what she was doing, and her time was wasting away.

She snuck away from the locked door and peeked her head out into the hallway. A glimpse of red lit the hall. Hattie snapped back, slamming the door, breath hitching through her. Did she see me?

"Come out, come out, wherever you are!"

OH NO.

Hat Kid reached for the other door but heard rasping floorboards behind it. She froze. Was she imagining it? Was she so terrified that her mind was playing tricks on her?

I can't risk it.

She backed away from the door. Her eyes darted back and forth between the two doors. Where could she go? Could she escape at all? Or was she going to die again?

I can't waste more time.

Door number one opened, and the queen crept into the room. "There you are!" Vanessa crowed.

Hat Kid immediately dove for the next door. Her hand slipped on the knob as it turned under her touch, swinging open. Hat Kid stumbled back as Elliot entered the room.

She backed away, drawing her umbrella. Back and forth, she watched the two pairs of sharp red eyes fixed on her. The pair crept forward as she shakily retreated.

Her back brushed against the wall. She was trapped. The door was locked. There was nowhere to go; she was cornered, she was about to die again. Fingers tightening around the handle of her umbrella, she bristled at the two. Can I fight them off?

Hat Kid glowered at both of them. Stupid Vanessa, being evil and cruel. She couldn't just leave them be, huh? If the queen had just let them go, then they never would've come back!

And Elliot... stupid Elliot for getting himself cursed! How had he not expected Vanessa to try and manipulate him again?

Dread settled in her stomach. But he did expect it, Hat Kid reminded herself. He made me promise to save him if things went badly...

Her angry thoughts faltered. Hat Kid kept a close eye on the queen, feeling tears prick their corners. "Hey, Elliot?" she started. "Y'know how you asked me to please save you if anything went wrong?"

He paused in his approach, flaming eyes curious. "...Yes?" he asked.

"I really don't know what to do here," Hat Kid admitted. Vanessa reached for her, and she batted her claws away. "I wanna help, but I... I'm not sure what to do."

"Oh." Elliot tilted his head and smiled. "That's a kind offer, but I don't need any saving!"

"Yeah, you do!" Annoyed, Hat Kid couldn't help but lower her umbrella. "Look at yourself! Look what you're doing! You're trying to kill me! Do you know how messed up that is?!"

Something flickered across his face. His smile faded.

Vanessa drew her hand back and huffed angrily. She shot a side glance at Elliot. "Don't listen to the brat, my prince," she told him sweetly. "She's just trying to upset you."

Elliot lightly shook his head. His smile returned, directed at Vanessa. "Y-you're right as always, princess."

Hat Kid sighed. And she really thought she almost got through to him. "Me upsetting you?" she retorted. "Don't you remember how Vanessa hurt you? She's just manipulating you again!"

Elliot flinched. He turned his gaze to the floor.

"How dare you!" Vanessa shrieked, whipping around again to loom over Hattie. "I'm helping him!"

Hat Kid stepped backward, her back pressing firmly against the door. Defiantly, she glared at the queen. Vanessa snarled and reached for her.

"W-wait!" Elliot darted in front, throwing himself in between the two. "Van, love, please listen."

Vanessa reluctantly withdrew. "We don't have to hurt her!" Elliot exclaimed, fidgeting with his hands. He sounded hopeful. "I-I know that's not what you were trying to do, right? We can let her go and be together. It'll be okay."

Hat Kid stared in disbelief. She wished she could see Elliot's face. Maybe she had gotten through to him, at least to the point where he stood up for her.

Vanessa regarded him silently.

"Please?" Elliot asked. "I don't want to ask too much of you, my princess." He reached for her hands. "I'm yours. How about we do this one thing?"

She softened. She lifted one hand to reach for his face. "My prince..." she murmured.

He relaxed and leaned toward her hand. "Yeah?"

Vanessa drew her hand back and slapped him across the face. Hat Kid gasped. He reeled back. She swept him to the side with her foot, sending him sprawling.

Eyes wide, Elliot gingerly touched the sore spot on his face. His hands trembled.

"You're a fool," Vanessa snarled. "Know your place."

Elliot drew his legs in, tensing up. He looked stunned, but as the shock wore off, terror and despair entered his scarlet eyes.

Vanessa stomped toward Hat Kid. "Finally," she hissed. "Finally, I'll be rid of you, you little pest-!"

The ruby glow of her eyes was suddenly swallowed by bright blue. The queen stumbled back as a wall of fire shot between the two, catching her dress and alighting it with embers. Vanessa screamed furiously.

Sparks curled around Hat Kid, but they didn't touch her. She stared, wide-eyed, as Vanessa stomped the hem of her dress, struggling to quench the flames. Before everything fully registered, Elliot grabbed her hand, pushed past Vanessa, and pulled them both out of the room.

Hat Kid glanced up at him. The shadows broke away from his body piece by piece, his natural colors appearing in fragments across his face. Tears streamed down his face, the red in his eyes leaking out with them.

Maybe I did get through to him after all. Hat Kid cracked a smile.

"GET BACK HERE!" Vanessa demanded. Her voice hammered a nail into Hattie's skull.

Elliot jolted to a stop too. He gritted his teeth and gazed back the way they'd come. "Princess," he whispered, anguished.

He started to step back, but Hat Kid gripped his hand tighter and tugged him away. "No!" There was no way she would let him go back to Vanessa, not after she just got him back!

She didn't want to see Vanessa or that stupid manor ever again. Hat Kid clung to him and closed her eyes, teleporting them back to the ship.

Her eyes flew open the moment they were back in her room. She let go of Elliot and stumbled away.

On weak legs, he sank to rest in a pile of pillows. Panting, he wiped at his eyes. Shadows chipped away from his body with every second. He groaned and covered his face, pressing the heels of his hands firmly over his eyes.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I'm so sorry."