“I have to say, this is your strangest idea for a role-play yet.”

“Are you going to drop me down already?”

“Sigh…” my tist smirked, then snapped their fingers. “Sink.”

~

In my mind’s eye, I was in a majestic auditorium, standing upon the stage before a lone microphone, all seats empty bar one.

My tist sat before me.

“Mesmerize,” they said.

“Mesmerize,” I repeated. “M, E, S, M, E, R, I, Z, E. Mesmerize.”

“Very good. Full marks,” they applauded. “Next: deep.”

“Deep… D, E, E, P. Deep…” I noticed the words having a soporific effect on me.

“Are we sleepy already, my little worker bee?”

“Sleepy…”

“Don’t spell that,” they paused thoughtfully. “Actually, do. Sleepy.”

“Sleepy. S… L… E… E… P… Y… Sleepy…”

“Wonderful,” they congratulated in their calm, hypnotic cadence. “Docile.”

“Docile…” My thoughts slowed. “Docile…”

“Would you like me to use it in a sentence?”

“Yes.”

“Yes?”

“Yes, queen…”

“I have a docile little speller bee under my control, and though they’re losing focus, they can still spell the word.”

“Docile… D… O… C… I… L… E… Docile…”

I felt flushed with obedience, barely standing from the mesmerized, deep, sleepy, docile exhaustion.

“You look tired,” they teased. “You can lie down after you spell this next word. Relaxed.”

“Relaxed… R… E… L… A… X… E… D… Relaxed…”

My knees buckled and I slowly lay down on the stage. The warm, soft lights soothed me…

I saw my tist stand over me.

“I am enjoying this double entendre you’ve suggested for our scene, my little worker bee. You spell a word, and it casts a spell on your hypnotized little mind. Last word for now, before I really start conditioning you. Sleep.”

“Sleep… S… L… E… E… P…”