Chapter 9: Going Deeper

Sandy

For a moment, Sandy simply stared at Mistress Catherine, at a complete loss for words. Images of her hypnotist returning to plunge her back into trance, then filling her body with orgasm after orgasm until the sun began to rise flitted unbidden through her mind. Finally, the more practical part of her brain won out and she stammered a greeting.

"H-hi. I, I just realized I never paid you for your time..." Sandy's eyes fell meekly to the floor as a flush crept over her face. She had sounded like a little girl, and suddenly felt very small in front of the commanding Mistress.

Mistress Catherine just laughed before responding, "My dear, consider it a birthday present. We aren't here for money. It seems that I've lost my pendant, and I was wondering if you might let us in to look for it."

The memory of the pendant wafted into Sandy's mind – how she had watched it, how it had entranced her – and her eyes started to take on a far-away look. Realizing that she hadn't answered Mistress Catherine, she shook her head and replied, "Oh, yes, come in. Please."

Mistress Catherine entered with Eve in tow before she addressed Sandy once again.

"This has actually happened before – you see, I drop the pendant as I tell my subjects to sleep. The subject is, at that point, trained to watch the pendant no matter what. So, her eyes follow it as it falls quickly down, and then she feels herself falling at the same moment. The two combine to plunge the subject into a very deep trance. Unfortunately, I sometimes get so wrapped up in the rest of the hypnosis that I completely forget that the pendant is still lying on the floor."

Sandy had listened to Mistress Catherine's explanation intently. Hearing Mistress Catherine explain her methods helped to put her at ease and, at the same time, the description of this technique caused her to look upon the hypnotist with a new level of awe. Locked away in some part of her mind, Sandy had believed that the pendant held some kind of mystic power. Now, she realized, it was nothing but a trinket – it was Mistress Catherine who held all of the power.

"May we look around?" Mistress Catherine's question snapped Sandy out of her temporary daze.

"Oh, oh yes, of course. Shall I turn on some more light?"

"Oh, no, there is no need. Dimmer lights help the pendant to sparkle, which makes it easier to find. Besides, it probably just got kicked under the couch or something during all of the ... thrashing."

Sandy was thankful that the dim lighting hid the blush that spread across her face at that comment. Still, somehow she felt relaxed around Mistress Catherine, but also a bit off balance; like she wasn't in control of the situation, but that that was okay. Mistress Catherine was good at evoking that feeling, Sandy thought, which is probably why she was such a good hypnotist.

Eve soon dropped to her knees and started looking around under the chairs just as a distant roll of thunder sounded outside. The rain on the windows had also picked up a bit.

"Can I help look?" Sandy asked.

"Oh, no, I'm sure Eve will find it in a moment. Why don't you just sit down and tell me how you feel about what happened tonight."

"Oh, it was wonderful," Sandy replied as she sat down on her couch. "I feel like ... I'm almost a different person."

"Oh, don't be silly. I explained this to the other girls earlier, but I guess you were too far gone to hear it: hypnosis can't make you do things you don't want to do. You're not a different person. In fact, you're probably more yourself now than you've ever been. What happened tonight was a process of self-discovery."

"And what did I discover?"

"Well, only you can truly answer that. But you said that the experience was wonderful – it sounds like you liked what you found." As she said this, Mistress Catherine stepped behind the couch, out of Sandy's line of vision.

"Oh, yes. I'm so glad all of this happened. Although..."

"Yes?"

"I am a little worried about seeing Penny on Monday."

"Oh, it will be fine. There's no reason to feel tense about that." Immediately after Mistress Catherine spoke these words, Sandy felt the hypnotist's hands on her shoulders, gently massaging her muscles from behind the couch and helping to alleviate the anxiety that Sandy felt regarding Penny. For a moment, Sandy wondered if Mistress Catherine was planning to hypnotize her again. That thought thrilled her, but it also frightened her a bit – what might her Mistress do if Sandy were hypnotized and alone with her? Any anxiety she might feel, though, quickly dissipated under the expert fingers of Mistress Catherine's massage.

"There's still one thing I don't understand." Sandy said, even as her eyes closed with the calming sensations of Mistress Catherine's touch.

"What's that?" Mistress Catherine still spoke with the same tone of voice, giving no indication that she was aware of the effect that her hands were having on Sandy's increasingly relaxed muscles.

Sandy was finding it a bit hard to think, but somehow managed to stammer out, "H-how did Penny end up hypnotized? I mean, the other girls said something about it, but they seemed a bit confused, too." It felt good to Sandy to ask the question – as if it proved to herself that she still had control of her thoughts.

"Well, part of her wanted to go under, so when I was hypnotizing you, that part of her mind took over and she fell into a trance as well."

A ripple of thunder caused Sandy to slowly open her eyes as she said, "But she's so independent and strong. She's always so in control. I just can't imagine her letting go like that."

"Perhaps that's why it happened. You see, people submit to hypnosis for a variety of reasons. Some want an excuse to lose their inhibitions – they see hypnosis as an excuse to act in ways that they are otherwise too shy to act. Others, like Penny, are drawn to hypnosis as a way of escaping responsibilities. To be in control all the time can be very taxing, and hypnosis offers someone like Penny the chance to be free, to let someone else be in charge, and take on the responsibility..."

There was a pause, and Sandy's mind raced as she tried to figure out which of these applied to her. Somehow, neither one sounded exactly right.

Eventually Mistress Catherine broke the silence: " ... and then others go under because, deep down inside themselves, they are simply..." Mistress's left hand suddenly drifted away from Sandy's shoulder and softly caressed her face as she bent down and whispered in the stunned girl's ear, " ... submissive." A flash of lightening placed extra emphasis on that word in Sandy's mind.

Sandy gasped at that word as her eyes closed and immediately she felt her nipples puckering and her sex growing moist. Opening her eyes again, she resisted the implications of what her Mistress had just said, feeling a sense of confusion and turmoil – one that was punctuated by the roll of thunder that poured over her home. After all, she had just struck out on her own, she had taken on a job, gotten her own place. She admired Penny for being such a strong woman. Surely, underneath it all she wasn't simply craving something else...

Sandy jumped slightly when she realized that Mistress Catherine had moved around to the front of the couch. The hypnotist sat down next to Penny and gently tucked a loose strand of Sandy's still moist hair behind her ear. Over the sound of a heavy rain, Mistress Catherine soothed the young girl: "It's okay, Sandy. You've been through a lot tonight, and you need time to sort it all out. There are so many reasons that a young woman might desire hypnosis. You'll discover yours as you learn more about yourself."

Sandy looked up at her Mistress, not knowing what to do or say. Mistress Catherine remained silent, but reached towards Sandy and gently undid the top button of Sandy's shirt. Sandy looked down at what her Mistress was doing, but otherwise didn't react. Mistress undid another button, and then another. And then, she gently pushed Sandy until the young woman was lying back in the couch, her head now supported by the soft cushions.

This position, combined with the open buttons, caused Sandy's shirt to part in the front, exposing her breasts – revealing the pointed nipples and making Sandy's heavy breathing quite apparent. Sandy momentarily moved her hands towards her breasts to cover herself – to protect herself from this powerful woman. But somehow, under Mistress Catherine's watchful eyes, she couldn't bring herself to do it. Her arms simply fell back to the couch, leaving herself exposed.

"Why don't you unbutton the rest, Sandy?"

Sandy hesitated before reaching for the buttons and slowly undoing them, one by one. When she had finished, her hands fell to her sides once again. She lay on the couch, looking at her Mistress who held her gaze with those deep, powerful eyes.

Another flash of lightening engulfed them, as Mistress Catherine reached towards Sandy again – this time to draw the shirt off of the young woman's shoulders – first one, and then, as the thunder rolled over them, the other.

Sandy simply lay where she was, lifting her shoulders just slightly to make it easier for Mistress Catherine to undress her. Her mind was filled with so many different thoughts – thoughts of submission, of allowing Mistress Catherine to take over her body and her mind, but also thoughts of Penny, of strength and independence; of growing into a powerful, commanding woman. All of these conflicting images left her speechless, powerless, and the easiest thing for her to do was to continue to yield to Catherine's soft, seductive control.