Delta sat on the bed, nervously intertwining their fingers. Their eyes were still wide in shocked surprise, considering what their Mistress had just told them.

    Hypnotize them? What? Was that a real thing? So many questions, all of which they were scared to ask. But they couldn't just stay silent...

    "Um... I'm sorry, Mistress, but what do you mean?" they asked shakily.

    She groaned, holding a hand to her face in exasperation. "What do you mean, 'what do you mean?'"

    Delta flinched. Caution was the best plan for now, but they still needed to know. "I mean, um... what will you do?"

    "I'm going to bring you under," she said in annoyance, putting her hands around Delta's neck. Not choking them — but caressing. Delta still felt uneasy at the contact, the contrast of her cold hands, soft at the same time. "I'm going to make you feel very relaxed. And then, I'm going to make you do whatever I want you to do, and you won't need to be conscious enough to have a say in it. Do you understand?"

    Delta didn't, really. Was that even possible? All they knew about hypnosis was someone sitting in front of a giant black and white spiral, being told they were very sleepy. And even then, they weren't sure if it was a real thing. But they didn't want to ask any more questions, not when she was already this frustrated.

    "Yes, Mistress," they answered with a start as they realized they'd been silent for an awkward length of time.

    She snapped her fingers. "Lay down on the bed," she ordered. Delta slowly complied, not taking their eyes off of their Mistress until they were lying face up. Their Mistress joined them on the bed, lying on her side next to Delta.

    "I'm going to make you feel very relaxed," she said softly, putting her hand on Delta's waist. "Make sure you follow all of my instructions. You won't have to do much else."

    Delta had a hard time relaxing in such an unknown situation, but they did their best to do what she asked and stabilize their breathing. They failed. Yet there was still this weird feeling of safety — as if no matter what happened, they were safe with her, especially if they weren't going to need to feel anything. Their heartbeat thudded in their ears, quick and heavy.

    "Start by taking some deep breaths. Inhale on four, hold for four, exhale on four," she explained.

    Delta actually knew how to do this part. Meditative exercises were how they'd stop themself from switching when things were really bad. They forced themself to take a few breaths as she directed. It was difficult, though; their captor was telling them to relax. But... it was her. Not someone else. Slowly, they calmed down, and their heart let up from its loud, all-consuming thudding. Calm, slow breaths.

    "Good, good," she cooed, sliding her hand up to Delta's chest and resting it there. Comforting. "Close your eyes." Delta's eyes fluttered shut. "I'm going to take you into a deep, dark place."

    Delta already was there. So dark, so safe...

    "Imagine you're floating," she continued, running her fingers in a figure eight shape across Delta's chest. "Floating in a dimly lit space. And there is a dark, thick red mist surrounding you."

    Delta's mind paused for a moment as their mental image changed, the silent void filled with mist. They let themself focus on it until they could almost feel it, cool and wet. They shivered, but were still so calm.

    "Take a deep breath," she ordered, and Delta complied. The mist flowed in, suffusing their body, flowing through them. "You begin to inhale the mist." Delta paused again as their mental image rewound. "It starts at the tip of your head... down your forehead... down your eyes... down your mouth, and chin..."

    She moved her fingers to the top of Delta's head, sliding her hand down each body part she mentioned. Every single piece of Delta felt more relaxed as they let that mist fill them.

    "As it fills you, you lose more and more of yourself. Your body is going to sleep. Your mind doesn't need it, right now.."

    She kept listing body parts to fill up Delta more. Their body felt so distant, as the mist took them, down and down...

    "Keep breathing," she whispered. "That is the only part of you that is not shutting down. Focus on it, let it fill you. Breathing in the mist, out everything else."

    Delta felt themself sinking into the silence, their body irrelevant. The only thing they could still hear was their breathing, and their Mistress' soft words. Their hesitation about hypnosis seemed as distant as everything else.

    "Your stomach... your waist... down your thighs... everything is shutting down..." she continued, keeping her hand on Delta, bringing the red, thick mist. Delta didn't notice as her fingers stopped by their cunt, and she began slowly and softly jerking them off. Delta couldn't control the movements they were making, nor did they actually notice them.

    "Your lower legs."

    No movement left.

    "Your ankles."

    No feeling left.

    "Your feet."

    Just her words.

    "Your toes... and everything else."

    And then Delta was nothing. They let out an involuntary groan at their body's stimulation, but their Mistress didn't seem to mind.

    "You're fully in that mist now, aren't you? Made of it, made by it. So obedient. And, as it filled your body, you can feel it start to fill your mind."

    They could feel it, every bit of them filled with mist.. Flowing through them, flowing into them, they were flowing...

    "Your mind is fading," she guided them. "And it becomes darker, and darker, as the mist is all there is. You are the mist, and the mist is mine. You are mine."

    Delta was gone. They were mist, hers, and faded and fading. Consciousness was fading. That was the goal, right? But something felt off. There was something besides the mist, someone watching them.

    Suddenly, it clicked. If their eyes would open, they would be wide with horror. This trance was causing them to slip. They struggled to wake themself up, but they were the mist, and the mist was fading. Drowning. Disappearing. And she was taking their place. Delta's thoughts began to become numb, even as their mind hardened, sharpened, focused. They couldn't let this happen! This was going so well! They weren't being tortured, they were being treated well... They couldn't let Kassandra —

—

    Delta stopped, and Kassandra took their place.

    It took a moment for her to orient herself. She hadn't been out in the front in a very long time — and when she was, usually Delta was there alongside her. But now, Kassandra alone could feel what was going on with vivid horror. Delta certainly had gone into a trance, but Kassandra was wide awake. And she wasn't planning to leave them at a hypnotist's mercy.

    Her eyes snapped open, and shot to the woman next to them — Delta's Mistress. Even thinking of her like that filled Kassandra's eyes with fury, making their Mistress' eye twitch in annoyance at her disobedience.

    "I told you to keep your eyes closed, playthi—"

    "Stop," Kassandra growled. That growl covered her body's voice dropping half an octave. Kassandra, while more feminine-presenting than Delta, spoke far deeper than her meek host.

    "What?" their Mistress growled, confused and angry at the sudden change in attitude. "How dare you—"

    "I. Said. Stop!" Kassandra shouted again, jolting out of the bed. Her body felt stiff and tired, but her mind was definitely wide awake. Her eyes flicked around the room for something to defend herself with, but it looked like she'd have to use her fists if she needed to. Thankfully she and Delta had a couple self defense classes under their belt.

    Delta's Mistress stood up, and backed Kassandra into the wall. Even though Kassandra was taller than Delta, that didn't translate to her physical body, and she was not in an advantageous position. "What got into you? Stop now, or—"

    "Get the hell away from me!" Kassandra lifted her fists and clenched them, committing to the fight.

—

    Delta's Mistress took a mental step back, assessing the situation. Delta's voice had dropped, and their eyes were... different, somehow. Wild and hateful, where they'd been questioning and shy moments before. And the way they spoke... their defiance didn't seem like anything that Delta could even begin to imitate, given the previous meek acceptance. That only left her with one idea, as absurd as it sounded.

That this wasn't Delta.   

"Well then. I'm going to go into the other room for a few minutes so you can compose yourself," she huffed, putting her jacket back on. "When I come back, I expect you to thoroughly explain your... change in attitude."

    She stepped out of the room with impatience. Kassandra watched her go, the initial surge of adrenaline fading, and then felt things in her head... shift. She stumbled, falling back to sit on the bed, as she felt a pressure on her mind. She knew why, of course. Delta wanted to talk to her. And even she had to admit she owed them that much.

—

    Delta woke up back in the headspace, facing Kassandra on an endless expanse of white. No one was fronting, both of their attentions focused solely on each other. And in that attention, Kassandra could feel Delta's fury.

    "I have a quick question. What the hell?" Delta roared, and Kassandra shivered. Delta wasn't one to get furious. They were passive, and fear kept them from standing up for themselves. So why, exactly, were they doing it now? 

"Why did you come out, Kassandra?! We had an agreement. I was going to take care of this! Do you want us to get thrown out into the streets again?"

    "Delta, I'm sorry," Kassandra said hastily, trying to placate them, thinking of what to say. 

"I... I don't know what happened," she lied. "I was just pulled out somehow. You were gone, and there was no one to stay out, and I —"

    "Yeah, well, you should think a little more before you act. We're lucky that she's giving us time to compose ourselves. Who knows how long she'll be patient with us?" Delta felt themself coming back to the front, as if trying to escape from Kassandra. Kassandra followed.

    "Lucky?" Kassandra spat, some of her fire returning. "We're literally her property, Delta! Do you even understand what that means? We're as unlucky as you get! Do you even care?"

    "Well, things can always get worse!" Delta shot back. "Right now, we're given shelter, food, the ability to go outside... that's more than any of the other people from the auction probably got. Do you want us to be like them?"

    "No, Delta, I want us to be free! And I'm going to do everything I can to make sure that happens, even if I have to fight you for it."

    There was a moment of silence as Delta struggled to find a response. Kassandra huffed.

    "Now I understand," she snorted. "You're too naive and stupid. You'll trust anyone, so long as they show some shred of kindness. Oh, she's kind now. But who's to say she won't take advantage of us later? She tried to take your mind, Delta. And she would have, without me. Do you not think about your safety — about our safety — enough to consider that? God, I hate sharing this body with you. If I could split myself off from you and get the hell away, I would, you weak, pathetic—"

    "Kassandra..." they said quietly. She stopped. That had probably been too much, wasn't it? But they'd have needed to hear it eventually.

    "What? Did I strike a nerve?" she scoffed.

    "...I think she can hear us."

    Kassandra's attention snapped back to her body, and she realized with horror they'd both lost control in their anger. They had been speaking out loud. No, not speaking — they'd been shouting. And, in the silence that followed, she heard the footsteps Delta had noticed. Fear gripped both of them as those footsteps grew louder.

    "What are we going to do?" Kassandra hissed.

    Delta took a deep breath. "I... I'm going to talk to her. Alone." Kassandra drew back indignantly. "Look, I can handle this. I promise. And if anything bad happens to us... then, you were right. And I'll let you handle things from here on out. No questions asked."

    It was a tempting deal, she had to admit. Either way, Delta was safe... even if she didn't like the idea of leaving them with a hypnotist. "Okay, Delta. I'll trust you. Just... don't do anything that will get us hurt, okay? And... please don't go back under for her. Not tonight." Not ever, she thought to herself.

    Delta smiled and gave a quick nod. Kassandra faded back, leaving Delta to face their Mistress. Alone.

    As if on cue, the door opened. She was standing there, arms crossed, her expression far more concerned than they'd expected. They turned to look at her, eyes downcast. Their lips quivered. Waiting for what was going to happen.

    The silence that filled the air was painfully tense. Their Mistress seemed unwilling to start the conversation herself — which, unfortunately, meant it was up to Delta to initiate.

    "I... I know I need to explain," Delta started.

    "Yes, you do," she said evenly... but not angrily. They let out a breath they didn't even realize they'd been holding. But her not being angry now didn't mean they were safe. It wouldn't be the first time explaining their... situation had led to escalation. They lifted their eyes, hesitantly meeting their Mistress's gaze.

    "Um... I'll explain as best as I can," they said slowly.