Tara shook her head. She bit her lip. She stamped her feet. But still her gaze remained fixed on what she desperately wanted to look away from.

She tried running a song through her mind. A jingle would do the trick--an overly catchy tune, an earworm. But she couldn't of think of one. She kept faltering.

Still she stared at it.

The object of her attention moved slowly but surely. It repeated its motion without break or pause. It swung back and forth, back and forth, on and on, on and on.

Tara knew that she was being hypnotized. Of course she did. She had agreed to it. She had encouraged the attempt. It had been a challenge. It would test her willful confidence against the supposed skill of the charlatan.

That confidence had since evaporated. The charlatan had proven to be anything but.

She began relaxing now, despite herself. Her efforts to rouse herself sputtered to a halt. No more head shaking, lip biting, or foot stamping occurred. Her fidgets ceased. Her thoughts melted away.

Only her concentration remained, cemented upon the slowly swinging object--back and forth, back and forth, on and on, on and on.

Unknowingly, she sighed. Her eyelids drooped. A cloying heaviness pulled at her consciousness. She felt herself spiraling downward into a warm, lush, inviting embrace from which she never wanted to leave.

She closed her eyes.

The object slowed unto a stop.

"Tara."

"Hmmm?"

"You are now hypnotized. Do you understand?"

"Yes."

"That means you lost our bet."

"I lost our bet."

"Your will was not strong enough to resist me."

"My will was not strong enough to resist you."

"Your will was weak."

"My will was weak."

"Now, you have no will."

"Now, I have no will."

"You will do whatever I say."

"I will do whatever you say."

"Address me as Master."

"Yes, Master."

"Take off your shoes and socks."

"Yes, Master."

"Whenever you are in my presence, whether you are hypnotized or awake, you must be barefoot. This will demonstrate your subservience to me."

"Whenever I am in your presence, Master, whether I am hypnotized or awake, I must be barefoot. This will demonstrate my subservience to you."

"How many people do you know at this party?"

"I know several people at this party, Master."

"Who?"

"I know Stephanie, Master..."

Stephanie sat beside the hypnotist. Her feet were bare. She smiled contentedly but took little interest in the scene playing out before her.

"...and also Kate, Jenny, Flora, and Lisa."

"Did any of them come here alone?"

"Yes, Master. Flora did."

"When I awaken you, which I will do with two snaps of my fingers, you are not going to remember being hypnotized. In fact, you will believe that you succeeded in resisting my attempt to hypnotize you, thus winning our bet. You will once again be able to think and act for yourself, but you will continue to obey me, even though you will be unaware that you are doing so. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Master."

Hearing two snaps in rapid succession, Tara opened her eyes. She smiled.

"See, told you I couldn't be hypnotized."

"So you did. Are all your friends as strong willed as you, or do you think I could hypnotize any of them?"

"I don't know."

"What about Flora?"

"She's pretty stubborn. I'd say no."

"Why don't you ask her for me? Present her my challenge."

"You must like to lose."

"No, but I do like a challenge. Please ask her."

"Sure."

"When you come back, sit here beside Stephanie. But don't say anything. Don't interrupt. It will be nice to just sit and relax for a while. So very nice."

"Okay."

Tara got up and left the room. She searched through the mass of party-goers to find her friend.

A few minutes later, she entered the room again, with Flora right behind her. She walked over and sat next to Stephanie.

Flora eyed the hypnotist skeptically.

"This guy thinks he can hypnotize me? Really?"

"Yes, I do. Really."

"Great. Give it your best shot. Just be ready to pay up."

"I will be ready to do just that. And you be ready to obey my every word."

Flora snorted.

The hypnotist took out the object. He made it swing back and forth, back and forth, on and on, on and on.

Flora watched it swing.

She blinked several times. She wrinkled her nose. She clenched and unclenched her fists. But still her gaze remained fixed on what she desperately wanted to look away from.

And so it went in the room, as it had two times before. The object swung back and forth, back and forth, on and on, on and on.

It continued that way until Flora unknowingly sighed and closed her eyes....