Danny stared at the crystal dangling from the chain in his hand. This must be the key to the hypnotist's ability. The allure the that the crystal seemed to emit even in his hands all but confirmed it.

Now that he held it in his hand, it seemed to trigger a different sort of fascination. He felt confident, in control. As a result, possibilities were racing through his mind. Would he be able to do what the hypnotist had done? Did he just have to swing the crystal in front of someone or was there some other trick to it? What could he do with that kind of ability? He had to find out.

___________________________

Nicole sat quietly at her desk. She was studying for an exam on Monday when she heard a knock at her door. She opened it to find Danny standing there.

"Hey, how's the studying going?" he asked.

"I'm clueless on this, but I have all of today and tomorrow to figure it out," she responded.

"I wouldn't worry too much about it," Danny said. "I just popped by quick because I wanted to show you something."

He then pulled the crystal out from his pocket. Nicole snickered.

"You must really have been impressed by that show last night." She said.

"I guess it made an impression," Danny replied. Nicole's words suggested that she found it funny but it didn't escape Danny's notice that Nicole's eyes were fixated on the crystal. He began to swing it.

"Anyway, just relax, don't worry about anything," Danny spoke as he swung the crystal back and forth. "Just watch the crystal. Feel yourself relax, focus on my voice and what I am saying." Danny was making this up as he went along, but it seemed to be having the desired effect at Nicole blankly followed the crystal with her eyes.

"Now are you ready to listen to me and do what I say?" Danny asked.

"Yes," Nicole replied in a soft, emotionless voice.

"Save what you're working on and close your computer," Danny commanded. Nicole walked back to her desk clicked the save icon and closed her laptop.That was a fairly simply command, Danny had to try other things that Nicole would probably laugh in his face for asking to truly test the extent of the crystal's influence.

"Spin around three times," Danny said. Nicole promptly turned in placed three times. The video of what she had done while hypnotized the previous night then popped into Danny's head.

"Now, get on all fours and pretend you're a cat just like last night." He said. She dropped to her hands and knees and began meowing every few seconds. She then crawled over to her bed and brushed  herself against it before pausing to lick the back of her hand.

There was no denying the crystal's effectiveness now. Danny couldn't believe he held something so powerful in his hand. He had Nicole sit on the bed while he pondered what to do next. After looking around the dorm room, her open closet caught his eye. Inside. He spotted the maid outfit she had worn for the previous Halloween. On the shelf above it was a headband with cat ears that she had as a souvenir from the anime convention. He told Nicole to pack those items into her bag and follow him back to his place.

A while later, the were at the off-campus house that Danny was renting. He was watching in disguise belief as Nicole was sweeping the hallway dressed as a maid with cat ears.

"Once you're done with this, it would be great if you took care of the dishes in the kitchen." He said.

"Yes," Nicole replied in the same empty voice as before. He was going to have a lot of fun with this.