"Sleep..."

 

Chloe snapped her fingers as Alex and Caitlyn both collapsed into the depths of trance. Alex keeled over, leaning into the left side of the couch while Caitlyn slumped forward, shoulders touching her knees.

 

Cara watched from the armchair to the side, openly staring as Chloe's volunteers slipped ever deeper into hypnosis.

 

"Wow, that never gets old," Cara said to no one in particular. "Hypnosis is so cool, isn't it Bec?"

 

Cara looked over toward Beca, who was staring mindlessly, slack-jawed, from the kitchen.

"... Beca?"

 

The dish towel Beca had been using to do the dishes had slipped from her hand as the wine glass hung precariously from her loose grip. Eyes opening wide, Cara quickly jumped up from the chair and silently darted across the space, retrieving the wine glass just as Beca's grip let it go completely.

 

Chloe looked over at Cara, half with relief and half with belittling amusement.

 

"Dramatic much? We have other wine glasses you know," Chloe chuckled, both eyebrows raised.

 

"Be a waste of good stemware," Cara replied, twirling the glass in her hand before setting in on the countertop.

 

Crisis averted, Cara let out a soft giggle as she played with Beca's still body, posing her slightly as she poked a finger in Beca's cheek.

 

"Shall I do the honours this time?" Cara asked.

 

"Be my guest," Chloe replied, eyes alight.

 

"Wake up, Beca," Cara said, amused, as she snapped her fingers near Beca's right ear.

 

Beca jumped slightly as she shook herself out of trance, looking around, confused. She quickly noticed Cara standing inside her personal space while Chloe smiled her trademark Cheshire Cat smile.

 

"God, you're easy," Chloe said, lovingly, as she walked over and gave Beca a long, tender kiss.

 

Beca melted into Chloe's embrace, enjoying the moment.

 

"Don't give me too much credit," Beca remarked. "You're the one who made me this way," she said, playfully swatting Chloe's arm.

 

"Yeah, and emptying my water bottle into the ocean kept it from drying up," Chloe replied, sarcastically, sticking out her tongue.

 

"Hey, uh, lovebirds?" Cara interjected. "Aren't you two forgetting something?" She asked, thumb pointing over her shoulder.

 

Chloe and Beca looked behind Cara to see Alex and Caitlyn on the couch, still in the depths of trance.

 

"Oh! Right. Come on," Chloe said, as the party returned to the living room.

 

Cara reclaimed her place in the armchair as Beca leaned against the book shelf, arms crossed. Chloe walked behind the couch and placed a hand on Alex and Caitlyn's shoulders.

 

"Very, very good. Dropping deeper and deeper down for me, sinking further and further with every word I speak. You've done so well, and every time I hypnotize you, you become more and more susceptible to my suggestions..."

 

Chloe swore she heard a happy sigh escape Caitlyn's lips as the couple absorbed the hypnotist's words.

 

"Now, I've arranged a fun little game for us, tonight. You two like games, don't you?"

 

Alex nodded as Caitlyn whispered, "yes..."

 

"Wonderful! I want you to think about my pocket watch for a moment. Think about how beautiful it is, how captivating it becomes when it swings in front of your eyes..."

 

Cara looked over at Beca, seeing her eyes begin to glaze over. She playfully poked Beca in the ribs before she fell too far.

 

"... My pocket watch is the single most hypnotic, captivating, mesmerizing thing you've ever seen in your life. Isn't that right?"

 

Chloe waited for both her volunteers to nod.

 

"Good. Both of you, stand up for me, please."

 

Alex and Caitlyn stood up from the couch. Alex's head lolled to her right, neck completely relaxed, while Caitlyn couldn't keep herself upright and slumped at the waist. Chloe pantomimed to Beca to help her guide them. Chloe stood behind Alex while Beca stood behind Caitlyn.

 

"Now, open your eyes and feel my hands on your shoulders," Chloe cooed, nodding toward Beca. Beca placed her hands on Caitlyn's shoulders. "Feel me guiding you to the edge of the room..."

 

Beca kept her palms on Caitlyn's shoulders as she guided her to the left side of the room. Alex, bless her heart, actually held her arms out like a sleepwalker as Chloe guided her to the right side.

 

"Excellent! Close your eyes, now, and relax deeper down," Chloe crooned as her volunteers stood at opposite ends of the room.

 

"Yes, and as you think more and more about my pocket watch, you realize that it's the single most hypnotic, most mesmerizing object you've ever seen in your life. It has such magical, extraordinary power to hypnotize people, to enchant them into total obedience."

Chloe walked to the halfway point between them and placed her watch on the floor.

 

"I have placed the watch on the floor in front of you. Whoever retrieves the watch first will have endless power over the other person. The watch will make the other person do whatever you want. It will make the other person obey your every command. You need only to swing it before their eyes, and they will instantly fall under your power, eager to follow your every instruction..."

 

Chloe took a few steps back for good measure.

 

"And, wide awake!" She said, snapping her fingers.

 

Alex's neck regained its strength as Caitlyn stood up straight once again. Alex, seeing the watch on the floor, sprinted across the room to retrieve it. Caitlyn took a moment longer to awaken from trance, which gave Alex a head start. Caitlyn's taller build gave her a longer stride which helped make up the difference.

 

Alex reached the middle of the room nearly a second before Caitlyn; Alex, however, was less coordinated than Caitlyn, and struggled to slow down in time to stay upright. Alex fell to her hands and knees to pick up the watch. As she did, she looked up to find Caitlyn throwing her entire body at Alex, sending them both to the floor, the watch sliding across the carpet, just out of reach.

 

Caitlyn used the weight of her taller frame to weigh Alex down while reaching for the watch. Alex, meanwhile, smushed the palm of her hand into Caitlyn's face in an attempt to obscure the other woman's vision.

 

Beca watched, mouth agape, at the scene playing out before her. Cara was openly cheering both women on while Chloe just stood there with her Cheshire Cat smile, wishing she'd made popcorn for the occasion.

 

Caitlyn tried to capitalize on her longer arms, stretching out to get the watch by its chain. She just about had her fingers on the chain as Alex used the opportunity to tickle Caitlyn's exposed armpit relentlessly.

 

Caitlyn's body spasmed unexpectedly, arm pulling back to push Alex's fingers aside. Alex used the chance to wriggle her way out of Caitlyn's hold to lunge for the watch. Launching herself toward the watch, she grabbed it by its body. 

 

 

Alex lifted it up as she rolled over to face Caitlyn. Little did she realize that Caitlyn had retrieved a couch cushion and deftly covered Alex's face completely.

 

Alex stubbornly clung to the idea that she had the upper hand, and did her damnedest to keep her elbow planted and swing the watch - albeit blindly. Caitlyn, meanwhile, maintained her grip on the cushion over Alex's face, which effectively kept Alex from talking...

 

But that didn't stop Alex from swinging the watch.

 

Caitlyn tried to catch her breath as she kept her body weight on Alex, hand pressing into the cushion as she huffed and puffed. As she took a moment, her gaze fell to the swinging watch...

 

Instantly, her eyes followed it back... and forth... Her eyes glued to the watch's body as she settled into place, completely still except for her eyes darting from side to side. Both partners' breathing slowed from the ad hoc wrestling match slowing down - one pinned down by her larger opponent, the other pinned down from the mental hold of the opponent's watch.

 

Alex, meanwhile, couldn't tell if she'd succeeded in ensnaring Caitlyn or not. She knew that she couldn't hold this position indefinitely, so she planted her hand down for extra leverage - not realizing it was the hand swinging the watch...

 

The watch now unclaimed on the ground, Caitlyn shook her head to bring herself back to awareness. Alex took the moment to push the cushion away from her face, startling Caitlyn into remembering what was happening. Alex shoved Caitlyn up hard, the cushion tumbling to the side as she broke free of Caitlyn's weight. Alex saw Caitlyn, still half dazed, and used the moment of clarity to her advantage.

Giving it everything she had, Alex planted a hand on Caitlyn's shoulder and shoved in an attempt to scramble out from underneath. The sudden movement knocked Caitlyn back to reality. Breathing in sharply, Caitlyn dropped her weight against Alex again, heavier, pinning Alex's hips to the floor as her hands shot out to catch Alex's wrists.

 

Alex bucked, hard, in an attempt to throw her partner off. Caitlyn rode it in style, reaching out for the watch as Alex did the same. Both hands landed on it at the same instant: Caitlyn's on the watch's body, Alex's on the chain.

 

The couple's eyes met, briefly. Caitlyn swiftly, smoothly, surged forward and closed the last inch between them. Her mouth embraced Alex's, abruptly and suddenly, almost claiming. Caitlyn's tongue slid past Alex's lips and beyond, slow, thorough. Alex's body went completely rigid beneath, and then... melted.

 

Caitlyn felt Alex's grip on the watch loosen for a moment and moved back up, straddling Alex and resting her weight on Alex's hips. Holding up the watch, she began to sway it back and forth.

 

"Watch the watch, sweetie..."

 

Alex's eyes instantly locked onto the swinging watch, her body quickly deflating as the mesmerizing timepiece swung before her. Caitlyn kept up the patter.

 

"That's right. You thought you could get me, but I won. I won. You were quick, granted, but not as quick as me. Now, be a lamb and tell me you obey me."

 

"I... obey you..." Alex murmured, softly, eyes still locked on the watch.

 

"Again."

 

"I obey you," she repeated, more clearly.

 

Caitlyn's spine straightened as she felt the streak of dominant energy shoot through her whole body. She stood, elegantly and confidently, and leaned over her partner. With a finger under Alex's chin, Caitlyn whispered, "kneel..."

 

Alex slowly, languidly, got up off the floor and rested her knees on the carpet, eyes never leaving the swinging watch.

 

"You will kiss my feet," Caitlyn stated - not as a request, not as an idea, but as a command.

 

"Yes, Mistress," Alex replied, as Caitlyn sat on the edge of the coffee table. Raising her left foot to Alex's face, the hypnotized woman wasted no time in getting started. Alex held Caitlyn's foot in front of her face, gazing reverently at the beauty of the object before her, and softly, gently, began planting tender kisses along the arch of her foot.

 

"Ugh, is that what I look like when I do this?" Beca thought eyebrows scrunched, watching the show.

 

"Wow, if only that was me...!" Cara screamed internally, pupils dilated, lustfully watching the scene unfold.

 

"Oh, this is so giving me ideas for later," Chloe mused, taking mental notes...

 

Caitlyn ran her fingers through Alex's hair as she sat on the table, enjoying every second of her unexpected experience.

 

"Massage them, too," Caitlyn prompted.

 

"Yes, Mistress," Alex replied, raising her hands to obey.

 

Alex brought her hands to Caitlyn's foot, firmly pushing her thumbs into the soft flesh, seeking out every tender point.

 

Chloe, meanwhile, heard Cara make the tiniest moan beside her.

 

Leaning in close, Chloe whispered to Cara, "would you like to join them?"

 

Cara, eyes never leaving the hypnotized couple, only nodded meekly.

 

Chloe and Cara whispered back and forth for a moment, doing their best not to disturb the blissed out couple before them. "Yes. I consent," Beca heard Cara murmur.

 

"What was that about? Chloe, are you - "

 

Chloe interrupted Beca by placing a single finger across Beca's lips, effectively silencing her.

 

"Deep sleep, sweetie..."

 

Beca, true to form, fell into trance standing up, knees locking and legs staying straight to keep from hurting herself. 

 

Before Cara could react, Chloe whispered something in Cara's ear that she didn't quite catch. Stroking the back of Cara's neck, Chloe brought Cara quickly, profoundly, deep into trance.

 

Caitlyn, meanwhile, was too engrossed in her own fun with Alex to realize what was going on. When she realized it was oddly quiet in the room, she turned around to find Chloe basking in the armchair, with Beca and Cara kneeling before her, giving Chloe the same treatment.

 

Caitlyn, stunned, looked at Chloe, wordlessly seeking some sort of explanation.

 

"What? It looked like fun," Chloe said, chuckling as she wiggled her eyebrows.

 

"... Facts," Caitlyn replied, and turned her attention back to Alex...