(Control) You can make Dee tell you her weaknesses

It was beginning to tick you off, the way that Dee coldly played the superior detective in this situation and seemed to stubbornly stick to her own agenda without filling you in. You could keep bouncing off of her unusual demeanor forever, which was like a solid steel curtain, or you could use the one advantage you knew you had over her: your ability to use the Ring of Ursa Minor.

As Dee stood watching and waiting for you to give her another complaint she could squash or question she could deflect, you instead snapped your fingers, then watched her reaction.

Throughout your time up to this point watching Dee, she was characterized primarily by a lack of expressiveness-- intentional or unintentional, her face was a mask that allowed through no emotion. You wondered what kind of look she'd have on her face now that she was in a trance state. The answer...

... The answer was pretty disappointing. Her face seemed exactly the same. Had the control effect even taken hold? You resisted the urge to snap your fingers in front of her face, which would just undo the trance, and instead tentatively held up your hand in front of her face.

Still no reaction.

You held up just one finger, then moved it from left to right.

Her eyes followed it as she frowned wordlessly. "What... huh...?" she questioned, her characteristically dimly colored eyes lighting up bright green. It'd been successful after all!

Now the question remained: what should you make her do? You'd hypnotized her right on the second floor landing-- it wasn't a terribly private spot. Guiding her somewhere private would make it really strange for her when she woke up and possibly more suspicious. It meant that you had to use this time to the fullest...

Screw it. Firstly, you'd make her do the Macarena. It was worth every second you spent on it, watching her place her hands on her head and shake her hips from side to side. It really did seem that the Ring of Ursa Minor gave you total power over a person, no matter how hyper-competent they might be in their ordinary state.

You were tempted to goof around some more, but it was on to proper business. You needed clues that would help you when suspicions of others started flying. You needed something that you could use to legitimately undermine Dee if she kept coming after you, so you ordered her to tell you: what is the single most damaging piece of evidence against her in this case?

The detective was still dancing as she spoke, making it somewhat hard for you to concentrate. "Can't answer that... subjective question... do you mean by my own judgment...?"

You clicked your teeth. She was splitting hairs with you, even in this form. You told her to answer in terms of her own judgment.

"Most damaging piece of evidence... is that I hate Wanda Croft... we have history..."

That did sound really useful. Dee had been burying that one throughout your whole conversation, apart from the few times where she mentioned knowing a thing or two about the woman. You told her to tell you about the history.

"The Crofts... made a fool out of me... when I was younger... used magic to hide a criminal... he escaped justice and... the Crofts undermined me... I'll never forgive them for that..."

You needed just a bit more. How'd they undermine her?

"Used it to call my... competence into question... lost my promotion... demoted... shamed... they pretended to have been wronged... when they were aiding the perp..."

You were too annoyed with Dee to be truly sympathetic to her, but you had to admit, that was a very valid reason for holding a grudge against the Crofts. It also went a long way to explain why she was so convinced that real magic was at play here-- she'd seen it at work before.

Unfortunately for her, this was one hell of a motive. You made a note to use this knowledge as a lifeline if you needed to get yourself out of the bus later... even if it meant throwing Dee under said bus. Having finished your interrogation, you snapped your fingers, allowing her to cease the dance and also regain her senses.

The woman blinked in confusion a few times, then reached up to fix her hat upon her head. "Hm... While daydreaming... I appear to have moved two steps to the left. My hat is also slightly askew. My conclusion? I was the target of mind control just now. Just like Wanda Croft."

Trying to hide how her observation skills were making you sweat, you told her you hadn't seen anything strange occur just now.

"First, you talk to Wanda. She performs fellatio. Then, you talk to me. These strange, unexplained movements. Conclusion: you're the culprit in both cases." Her face betrayed no emotion and she even bowed in a show of respect. "You're my prime suspect. I'll let everyone know this during dinner."

You tried to convince her otherwise one more time as she descended the second floor landing at a brisk pace, then dropped it... chasing desperately after her would just make you look more suspicious. This was going to be one awkward dinner.

--A new clue has been obtained!--

--Someone's suspicion of you rises!--

--Check notes in the game tab--