The Hypnotist

Carlie swallowed once, still not sure about this.  She knew why she was here, though.  That part was very clear.

For the past few weeks, almost every night, she had been dreaming about something that made her wake up, feeling very good, a hand on her waist and the other on her neck. But, for the life of her, she couldn’t remember the dream.

That’s when her friend, Jess, suggested this hypnotist, Dr. Sara.  She said Sara was one of the best at retrieving forgotten memories and that, maybe, she could help Carlie remember this dream that always left her so pleased and so good.

She knocked on the door, hearing an invitation to come in.  Dr. Sara seemed about 10 years older than Carlie and spoke in a soft, melodic voice. Carlie figured that helped with the hypnotism. “Hi.  I’m Carlie.”

Sara smiled at her, inviting her inside and to take a seat on the sofa.  Carlie looked around nervously, so Dr. Sara explained a few things. “Have you ever been hypnotized before, Carlie?”

Carlie shook her head, so Sara went on. “It’s not really a matter of falling asleep, like they show in the movies.  You’ll be fully aware of everything I say and do, as well as what you say and do.  If you feel uncomfortable at any time, you have the power to bring yourself out of the hypnotism.”

Carlie had to know. “Will you make me do something dumb?”

Sara laughed, melodic. “No. I can’t do that.  I can’t make you do anything you don’t want to do.”

Carlie sighed, then explained what it was she wanted to know.  Sara listened, nodding. “Sounds like an easy enough regression.  Now, I’m sure you know the drill.  It’s been shown in plenty of movies and TV shows, although it’s not quite as melodramatic as they make it out to be.”

Sara reached over, turning on a white noise generator that sounded like water running. “Now Carlie, look into my eyes and listen to the water run.  Just relax.  Let yourself drift with the water.  Let everything just go as you go into a deeper mental state.”

Carlie heard another voice, not realizing it was hers at the time. “Like meditation.”

Sara’s voice smiled from somewhere. “Yes.  Just like meditation.”

Carlie breathed deep, letting herself go.  As she did so, she felt very light as Sara’s voice came through. “Carlie, let your mind drift back to the dream you’ve been having.  See it clearly in your mind, not clouded over by dreamscape.  Tell me what’s going on.”

Carlie heard herself talking, narrating as she saw everything crystal clear. “I’m in a theater, watching a magic show.  The magician is pretty good.  I can’t see how he’s doing it and I’m normally pretty good at that.”

She watched as the magician seemed to raise a hand and point at her. “He’s calling me up on stage.  I’m nervous.  I have no idea what he has in mind.”

Carlie stood, walking on stage as she saw what was waiting for her. “There’s a device here, a table with two spinning blades.  I’m thinking he wants me to inspect the blades to make sure they’re real and not something phony.”

Carlie gasped at what the dream magician did next. “He and one of his assistants are securing me to the table.  I’m the one who’s going to have the blades run through me!”

Carlie watched, unable to stop it as the two sawblades she’d seen went towards her body, one at her waist and the other at her neck. “He’s going to cut me!”

As soon as the blades touched, Carlie felt them.  They started to cut through her when….

…Carlie came out of her trance, knowing something wasn’t right.  She looked around for a moment before her head slid off and landed on the couch.  As she tried to adjust, her top half came off. “What did you do that for!”

Sara had a panicked look on her face. “You screamed like you were being hurt but couldn’t come back. I had to break the trance.”

Carlie looked up, trying to adjust her top half. “Well, something didn’t happen right!”

Sara apologized but had a puzzled look on her face. “What?”

Sara looked at her. “Your body’s cut in half and you’re beheaded.  How are you still alive?”

Carlie sighed. “It was a dream.  I guess the dream really happened.”

Sara reached over and picked up Carlie’s head, touching where her neck had separated at what felt like fresh, raw skin to Carlie. “You’ve been cleaved right where your vocal chords are. How are you still talking?”

Carlie just sighed again. “Can I ask how I’m going to be put back together again?”

Carlie walked into her bedroom that night, all looking back to normal.  She and Sara worked to try and get her back together for a couple of hours unsuccessfully until Sara had an idea.  She put Carlie under again, kind of giddy about her idea, and it seemed to work.

As Carlie sat on her bed, she had to smile.  The feelings she had being in pieces were still there, wonderful feelings that came through after the shock.  Of course, they were still there.

Carlie reached down to her hips, pushing down slightly until there was a soft “pop” and her upper half came clean off.  As her legs settled in, she laid her top half down, reaching up to her head and pulling again with a pop.

As Carlie lay there, in pieces again, she had to wonder.

Had Sara made it so she was a whole girl who could separate into pieces or was she really a girl in pieces who only looked like she was whole?