Exactly
“Today is a very unlucky day,” Akane said over Skype.
“It’s Thursday the 13th, not Friday,” Clark replied.
“Exactly. If it were Friday you would remember.”
“Remember what?”
“Being hypnotized, silly boy.”
“That never happened.”
“Exactly. Tomorrow will be better.”
“Because you’ll hypnotize me?”
“Exactly. Unless I already did.”
It was already Friday in Japan.
I woke up today at around 6 am to get some things done utterly convinced it was Friday, I don’t know why. Perhaps my body is aching for the weekend for a bit of respite and some unexpected adventures. Perhaps I was still half-asleep and messed up the calendar dates. Perhaps I was hypnotized to believe it was so. Either way, for a couple of hours the Friday impression lingered. It was Friday the 13th but since I’m not superstitious, it was a lucky day for me because things were flowing my way.
Now, just because it’s one day here that doesn’t mean it’s the same everywhere. Like trance perceptions, time is relative, dates are just conventions (or they’re a fruit, whatever suits your fancy.) Time zones can be hypnotic instruments especially if a person is already confused to begin with. This amalgam of random thoughts produced this one and now I want to go to Japan. When’s the next flight?
The Infection
The hive mind was growing, ghastly tendrils reaching out to everyone that walked by him.
Will smiled. Only he could see what was happening, only he could feel the possession taking shape. Their dull routines would continue until the day they were triggered, and forced to serve with blank eyes.
His Queen would be proud.
I’m going through Stranger Things at the moment. It’s not exactly binge-watching because I stick to two episodes a day and it’s not like there are that many. Currently at the halfway point of Season Two and I’m enjoying it quite a bit.
There’s a hive mind concept going on the second series and that’s something that makes a lot of sense when it comes to mind control fantasies. I’m not very fond of it because I like the idea of a certain individuality even if it’s a completely brainwashed one.
I wrote this one inspired by the roots of The Upside Down spreading through Hawkins, conceiving them as mental roots instead. The main character is called Will in homage to Will Byers but I replaced the vague idea of the spider-monster (It’s called Mind Flayer, right?) by a feminine presence for obvious reason. Obey your Queen, drones!
Lightheaded
“It’s over,” the announcer said. “Muhammad Ali wins the world heavyweight boxing title for the third time!”
“I float like a butterfly, sting like a bee!” He shouted.
“I can make you float with this,” the time-travelling hypnotist said, pocket watch in hand.
Everyone in the audience became lightheaded as she shuffled their minds away.
On September 15th, 1978, boxer Muhammad Ali defeated Leon Spinks at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans to win the world heavyweight boxing title for the third time in his career. He was the first fighter ever to do so.
I admit I didn’t know this specific piece of information until today and the reason why now I do is because I went looking for important events in history to write today’s piece. I wanted to do another time-travelling related micro-story and this was the first piece of news that made my imagination soar.
I float like a butterfly, sting like a bee! is one of Ali’s famous lines so I had to include it. The use of shuffling in the last line is purposeful too as it alludes to the Ali Shuffle, a fancy footwork that was executed by shuffling the feet back and forward rapidly, in a scissor-like fashion to entertain the crowd and distract his opponent from his hands. I guess the time-travelling hypnotist is also an expert boxer.
Transformations
He was a maid. A French maid. He had to clean all day and night long.
He was a robot, a metal drone. He stood to attention, silver skin, oily blood.
He was a dog, barking and whining, leather collar around his neck, happy to be a pet.
He was very suggestible. His Hypnodomme rejoiced.
It just did, no fancy story, I’m afraid. This was an impromptu, just a random take on hypnotic suggestibility and the things one can be made to believe while in trance. I could have described countless other situations but these were the first three that came to mind.
This was also one of those occasions where I finished writing without needing to trim the tale or add any words to it to achieve the required count for the challenge. They’re so rare that they deserve to be acknowledged so I did just that.
What about you? What would you like to become while hypnotized? What have you become already? Feel free to share any experiences you had if you so wish.