Zephyr looked eagerly at zir clock, counting the seconds that remained until the new year. “One minute!” ze announced to zir friends, Storm and Artemis, and they all eagerly turned their gazes towards the harbour. They had an excellent view from this bluff — they could all see the lights of the City reflecting off the dark waters of the harbour. It was lovely and quiet too — surrounded by trees, it felt like they had their own little bubble of reality, disconnected from the world.

 

Zephyr’s lanky frame was snuggled up in the crook of one of Artemis’s strong arms — ze could feel a blush rising to zir face whenever her muscles tensed up around zem. Storm was snuggled up on the other side of Artemis, stretching their lithe figure into angular shapes, constantly shifting as they stimmed.

 

Risking a glance back at zir clock, Zephyr took it in and quickly muttered “Five seconds!” before raising their gaze. And then the whole harbour lit up.

 

Fireworks sparkled and coruscated, twinkling as the points of light fell to the water and eagerly met their reflections. The harbour was painted in vivid shades of indigo and crimson, emerald and azure, the colours shifting with every new firework. Seconds after the first detonations, the three of them felt the rumbling thuds of the fireworks in their chests, the sounds washing over them.

 

“Happy New Year!” Zephyr said with a smile, turning to look at Artemis and Storm. And as ze watched the lights of the fireworks reflecting off their eyes, a mischievous grin flashed across zir face. The three of them had surprised each other with hypnosis before, and this seemed like a perfect opportunity…

 

“They’re so pretty,” Zephyr started, deliberately looking back at the fireworks. “Especially the reflections off the water, they look amazing!”

 

“Yeah,” Storm murmured.

 

“It’s always so nice to just watch the fireworks go off, watching those sparkling lights falling down. They’re so pretty to just follow…” Zephyr trailed off, emulating being lost in thought.

 

Zephyr caught a sly glance from Storm at that one — clearly they’d realised what ze was planning. But then they joined Artemis in watching the fireworks again, and Zephyr had to suppress a grin. Looks like someone doesn’t want to resist being hypnotised, ze thought.

 

“It’s fascinating to follow the trail of the rocket as it goes up,” Zephyr continued, ”then watch all the sparkling lights drifting down, so easily, so leisurely. Just drifting down, bit by bit, until they dim and fall away. And then your gaze gets pulled up by the next, and the cycle repeats…”

 

Sneaking a glance, Zephyr noticed that both Artemis and Storm were staring glassily at the fireworks, their vacant gazes filled with the sparkling and shining fireworks. Ze could even feel Artemis’s muscles slackening into relaxation under zem, which was very cute. Zephyr was unable to suppress an evil chuckle, and at that, Artemis blinked, some focus returning to her gaze.

 

“Heeeey,” Artemis murmured drowsily. “Devious…” she trailed off, before her gaze drifted back into the vacant stare of trance.

 

How very obliging, Zephyr thought. Noticing the fireworks were beginning to trail off, ze switched to zir softer, more soothing voice. “And as the fireworks begin to fade away, growing dimmer and less frequent, you can feel how you drop even further into this trance, even further under my spell.” Zephyr suppressed a chuckle at using that dramatic language, even as ze could see Storm flushing in the fading light.

 

Looking at zir two mesmerised friends, zir silken words having woven a web around their vulnerable minds, Zephyr thought. What to do with them… After a few moments, an evil grin spread across zir face. Well, it’s a new year’s tradition, after all.

 

“And while you’re so deeply mesmerised by the fireworks and my words, how about the two of you give each other a nice, new year’s kiss?”

 

Zephyr watched eagerly in the fading light as zir friends looked towards each other with trance-dulled eyes. Storm turned with exaggerated, inexact moves akin to those of drunkenness, whereas Artemis pivoted with a precise smoothness like she was underwater.

 

The two kissed — messily — but both melted into the kiss with an adoring passion. Hypnosis always did help with that; not that it took much for the three of them to share affectionate kisses. Such cute toys for my amusement, Zephyr thought, then hid their mouth behind their hand as they felt heat flushing zir face to the tips of zir ears.

 

After Storm and Artemis had broken off their kiss — and Zephyr had cooled down a bit — ze started to bring them back up out of trance, watching their thoughts return as their eyes became less glassy.

 

“...and ten — wide awake!” Zephyr finished with a snap. Storm shook their head to clear the cobwebs, and Artemis blinked rapidly as her gaze refocused.

 

“Well, look at that,” Zephyr drawled, a roguish glint in zir eye, “looks like the pair of you got a new year’s kiss after all.”

 

Artemis stimmed flusteredly, her mouth opening and closing without any words coming out. Storm gave a smile and a nod like a fencer acknowledging a point, accompanied by a playful glare. “Oh, I’m gonna get you back for that one!” they said, and Zephyr couldn’t find it in zir heart to regret that outcome in the slightest.

 

“I love ya both so much,” Artemis said, her words finally returning to her. The three of them cuddled up close, sharing in each others’ warmth. They watched the harbour return to stillness, as they revelled in their start to the new year.