The Erotic Mind-Control Story Archive

(I.)

Scott Littlejohn had always been different from the other children. At a very young age, his parents noticed an aptitude in him, an intelligence far beyond that of most children his age. As a baby, he was walking at the age most children were still learning how to crawl. As a toddler, his vocabulary of recognizable words were better than most children already in kindergarten. As a pre-schooler, he was reading and doing elementary math on the third grade level. Mr. and Mrs. Littlejohn were astonished by the boy’s talents, and proclaimed him a prodigy, encouraging him to study harder and learn more And unlike most advanced children, Scotty grew stronger and smarter under his parent’s well meaning pressure, rising to the challenge, and advancing far ahead of his classmates in school.

Alas, what happens to so many other smart children, happened to little Scotty as well. Recognizing him as different, and perhaps BETTER than themselves, the other children made him their personal bullying target, picking on him, knocking him down in the hallways, pointing and laughing at him whenever he came by. One particular boy, Vinnie Renyolds, a large behemoth of a child, took great delight in picking on the smaller boy, and Scott often returned home with torn clothes, split and busted lips, and several black eyes. It was a joke around school that Scott spent more time with his head in the toilet, thanks to big Vinnie, than sitting on the toilet. Yet and still, Scott flourished in his studies, merely accepting this as his lot in life, knowing that one day as an adult, his success would someday make up for all the abuse in his childhood.

One day he walked to school to see big Vinnie Renyolds picking on another kid, a transfer student from another school. The young black kid was about his size, small and slender compared to his schoolmates, and being a newbie, was a perfect target for the school bully. Perhaps not knowing fully what he was in for, the young kid tried to fight back, pushing Vinnie away, which only angered him even more. Scotty knew well what the outcome would be, and thinking nothing of himself, he jumped in, taunting the bigger kid, telling him to leave the new boy alone and pick on someone his own size. It was a brave a tactic as it was foolish, and the end result saw both Scotty and the new kid hanging upside down from the sliding board with their pants pulled down around their ankles, to their embarrassment and the entire playground’s delight. Afterwards, however, Scotty found himself possessing something he had never dreamed he would ever have. He now had a friend.

Years passed, and soon it was the first day of High School. Scotty, a mere fourteen year old boy, was nervous. He had not yet begun to bloom, to experience the growth or chemical changes of most boys his age. Still much smaller and weaker than his classmates, Scotty found himself sticking more and more with his one true friend, Michael Evans. Unlike Scott, Mike had reached puberty early, and had grown into a virtual giant, bigger and stronger than even senior kids. Vinnie no longer bothered him, and he left Scott alone when Mike was around, yet Mike couldn’t be around to protect him ALL the time. Furthermore, Scott had reached the age when he was starting to really notice girls. What kind of catch would he be if he continued to be known as the school wimp, always picked on by everyone, except when his only friend Mike was there to protect him. Scott walked along the road towards Ganfrey High School, dreading it all more and more with each step. Mike turned back at him, when he noticed that his buddy was no longer walking beside him.

“Yo, Scotty, what’s wrong? You don’t wanna be late for your first day of High School do you? C’mon, let’s get a move on!”

Scott shook his head. “Nah. You go on ahead. I think...heck I think I should probably go on back home. I’m not feeling too well anyway. My stomach feels like Mike Tyson used it as a punching bag all through his prison term.”

Mike chuckled. He always loved the way Scott could turn a phrase. “Oh give it up, man! I know you too well, Scotty, and I know what’s really bugging you. You’re still bummed out about being the smallest and youngest guy at high school. I keep telling you, man, you’ll hit your growth spurt soon enough. It happens to us all, eventually. Look at me! One day I was your size, and the next I had shot up three inches! Yer just a late bloomer, Scotty. But you’ll catch up with the rest of us by the end of this year, I know it.”

“Yeah, I hope so,” his friend responded dejected. “I just wish it would happen NOW! Mike I am so tired of being the target of everyone’s ridicule. You’re my best friend, Mike, and I love you like my own brother—”

“Hey hey hey,” Mike said, screwing his face as if he had bitten into a lemon. “Let’s not go there, homes! I keep telling you, you do NOT use the ‘L’ word with another guy, even if you are best friends.”

“Yeah yeah,” Scott said, smirking. “But what I mean is, you and I are as close as two friends could be, but still when I look UP at you, and you have to look down at me, it makes me feel...I dunno. Envious? Jealous? You were where I am now, the little guy, always picked on. But you, you’ve grown out of it. sigh I guess I am just growing tired of waiting for MY turn.”

Mike sighed as well. He truly felt bad for his friend. But what could he do about it? It was nature taking its own sweet time, and getting mad or dejected or upset wouldn’t hurry it along any faster. “Come on, Scott,” he said after a while. “We’re gonna be late if we don’t hurry.”

“Oh, all Reeiahgt!” Scott responded, with a squeak. Eyes wide, he glanced at his friend. “What the heeeliiaecck was thhhaahuut?” he tried to ask, his voice again breaking and squeaking at odd points. Mike blinked, then laughed. Scott frowned, but kept his mouth closed, not wanting to squeak again.

“Sorry man...I’m sorry, really,” Mike said after a few minutes. “It’s just that you should be careful what you wish for, you just might get it! And man, you just got it! Sounds to me like your voice is changing, the first sign of puberty setting in. Congratulations, man, looks like you are about to start catching up with the rest of us after all.”

Scotty grinned. “That’s Grreaaiicuuutt, Mike,” he said, then groaned, clamping his mouth shut.

Mike grinned. “Well bro, looks like no more Chorus for you this year. Now you’ll have to join band like I did when my voice started to change back then.” Scott rolled his eyes and opened his mouth to retort, but this time only air came out. He tried again to speak, but only managed a weak hiss. Screwing his face with concentration, he tried once again to speak but only managed a weak hissing. “Damn! What happened to your voice?” Mike said, worried now. “This is weird. I never lost my voice when it started changing on me. I just talked funny for a while. Come on, let’s hurry to school so you can see the school nurse.” The two took off, running right up onto the school grounds, heading straight for the infirmary.

(II.)

A few days later, Mike walked through the door of the Ganfrey Regional Hospital where Mr. and Mrs. Littlejohn were waiting anxiously outside the examining room. The two parents were pacing anxiously up and down the waiting room hallway. “How is he doing?” Mike asked as soon as he was in speaking range. “Any word yet?”

Mr. Littlejohn shook his head. “Nope. Nothing yet. And thanks for coming down to see him Michael. It will mean a lot to him to have his friend come visit him like this.”

“Hey, no sweat, Mr. Littlejohn. Scotty’s my pal, and if he’s sick I wanna be here for him. What did the doctors say?”

Mrs. Littlejohn sighed deeply. “They don’t know exactly what’s wrong. I mean, its obviously puberty setting in, but its at such a fast rate. In the past three days he’s shot up like a root! I guess maybe that’s what’s wrong with his...his throat. He hasn’t been able to talk since that morning when the nurse called. The doctor’s looked at it, and they don’t know what to make of it.”

“They said it a strange kind of...growth,” Scott’s father broke in. “Its not a tumor or anything, they know its benign, but they have no idea where it came from, or why. Its almost like a whole new set of vocal chords growing in among his other ones. Its the damnest thing I’ve ever heard of.”

“Is he gonna be okay?” Mike asked worried. “His life’s not in any danger is it? I mean, this is nothing that is gonna...ki...damage him or anything?” he asked, rephrasing the question seeing the stricken look on Mrs. Littlejohn’s face.

“He’s going to be just fine,” Dr. Leslie Stewart said, coming out of the examining room with a big smile. “He was in a lot of pain from that rapid unnatural growth in his throat, but it seems to have stabilized, and the medicines we’ve given him to ease the pain and swelling are working fine. He should be able to go home in a few more days.” Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Leslie smiled again. “This is a highly unusual case. I’d much enjoy the chance to study Scott more, to find out where this strange growth came from, and why we never found any signs of it before at his last check up only a few months ago. Something like this couldn’t have just sprang up overnight.”

Michael was thinking just the opposite. All of this seemed to have started quite suddenly indeed. He had even pointed out to Scotty at the time that when he finally did hit puberty it would rush on him, that he would catch up with the rest of them real fast. Whatever had happened to his throat had come on in record time. But he kept his thoughts to himself; after all, he was just a high school freshman. The doctor was an expert. If she thought there was a normal, logical explanation for all this, she was probably right.

“Can we see him now?” Mrs. Littlejohn asked plaintively, pleadingly.

Leslie smiled and nodded. “Of course. But only two of you, and only for a few minutes. He still needs his rest.” Mr. Littlejohn nodded, and pushed Mike forward, signaling that he would wait until later to see his son. Mike smiled at the gesture. “Very well then,” Dr. Stewart said, “follow me.”

Scott looked up from the book he was reading, and smiled. He was reclining in one of the hospital beds, under the covers, but his mother and best friend could still see the amazing changes in him. He had grown from a four foot six tall boy into a five foot one tall adolescent in three days. The traces of baby fat had completely disappeared from his face, and he even had the appearance of a fine thin line of hair growing on the bottom of his chin. Scott waved a large wiry hand awkwardly, gesturing at his long thin frame.

“Whoa! Talk about your growth spurts,” Mike said whistling softly. “Hey, doc, is THAT normal? I mean he looks as tall as I am now.”

Dr. Stewart shook her head. “No, not really. Yes, in some cases, puberty can come on suddenly, but I really think this is an extreme case. Its yet another reason why I want to do a really thorough examination of Scotty. This is the first such case I have ever heard of. I thought at first it was a glandular disorder, but his thyroid and pituitary both check out. Well, if you don’t mind, I’d like to give Scott’s throat a final once-over before I go off to my other duties.”

Scott dutifully sat up, and the doctor moves forward, taking out a small light and shining it down his throat. “Okay, Scott, open wide and say, ‘Ah!’” Taking a deep breath, the youth opened his mouth wide and huffed. Trying yet again to say the simple syllable, he huffed and huffed and huffed, blowing Leslie’s hair a bit with the effort. “Come on Scott. Your throat is nearly healed, all the swelling has gone down now, and the drugs should be relieving the pain. Just one little tiny ‘Ah’ is all I need. You can do it!” Taking a deep breath, closing his eyes and concentrating, Scott gave it one last try.

“....hiss...hiss...A..a...aaaahhhhAAAAAAHHHHHH!!” Scott sang out.

Mike felt it, felt that single simple note, like a splash of ice cold water down his spine. That single syllable rang through his entire being, seeming to shatter him like glass then put him back together mere seconds later. Weaving just a bit, he shook his head to clear it. Glancing up at Scott, he saw the boy was just as confused and rattled by the experience as he had been. Likewise, Mrs. Littlejohn was shaking her head, trying to get her bearings. Dr. Stewart, on the other hand, was still kneeling there at the side of the bed, eyes glassy, staring off into space. Scott was waving his hand in front of her eyes, but the woman did not respond. Finally Mike walked over and shook her gently. “Hey Doc, are you alright? What was that all about?”

Leslie blinked and came back to herself, shaking her head. “Huh? What? Where...oh. Oh. I’m sorry, my mind wandered a bit there.” She smiled softly, closing her chart and putting the light back in her white lab coat. “Well Scott, your throat seems fine now. With luck your voice should return in a few days. I’ll give you and your friends half an hour to visit before you have to rest again. I’ll return then with more pain medication.” Smiling again, she walked out the door.

“Man that was weird,” Mike muttered aloud. Mrs. Littlejohn turned and frowned.

“What do you mean Michael? She is a very good doctor, why would you think she is weird?”

“No, not her, what just happened was weird. You know, when Scott went ‘AHH!’ and the room kinda spun for a moment. I know you felt it too, Mrs. Littlejohn.”

“No, as a matter of fact I didn’t,” she said frowning deeper. “Michael, are you sure you’re feeling alright? You’re not coming down with something too are you?”

“No, of course not! Mrs. Littlejohn, didn’t you feel something...I dunno... WEIRD go through you a moment ago?” The woman continued to stare at him like he was crazy. Glancing to his buddy Scott for help, he gestured again. “Surely Scott knows what I mean. After all, the doc zoned out in front of him, and he was waving his hand in front of her face trying to get her to wake up.”

“Michael, I am sure you are exaggerating,” Mrs. Littlejohn said. “Dear, I know this has been as hard on you as it has been on us, and you are no doubt tired. Don’t worry, Scotty will be just fine in a few days. Why don’t you go home and rest a few days yourself.”

Mike sighed and shook his head. He knew what he knew, but apparently he was the only one. Glancing at Scott as he headed to the door, he saw the boy shrug. Okay, perhaps there were TWO that knew.

(III.)

Several days later, Mike answered the phone. “Hello? Evans’ residence. Mikey here.”

“Hey, Mike. Wuzzzuuuuuupppp!!”

Mike rolled his eyes. “Remind me not to go see Scary Movie with you ever again. Hey Scotty, how are you feeling? Glad to be able to talk again huh?”

After a slight hesitation, Scott replied. “Yeah I guess so.”

Michael, of course, picks up on it instantly. “Okay, homes. What is it? Something’s bothering you, and as your best friend and blood brother I demand that you tell me or I’ll be forced to kick yer ass!”

Again, another slight hesitation. “Well, its really nothing, nothing at all. In fact I probably shouldn’t even mention it at all, except...well you would probably be the only one to believe me.”

“Well, DUH! Do ya think?” Mike said with a smirk. “I always listen to your crazy stories and weird ideas. What is it?”

“Well...okay. You remember back in the hospital back when I spoke for the first time since my little growth spurt, and you guys kinda went all...fuzzy for a while?”

Mike shuddered slightly. He had definitely NOT forgotten. “Yeah, I remember. I tried to tell your mom but she didn’t seem to know what happened.”

“Yeah. And I couldn’t ask her about it myself until a few days later when my voice returned, and by then she had forgotten the whole incident. It was totally weird, man! For a moment when I said, Ah, it was like everyone kinda went to la-la land. It had to have been because of me, yanno. But I mean, how did I do it? I’ve been talking normally ever since and nothing weird has happened to anyone around me.”

“Yeah,” Mike said agreeing. “Yer talking to me on the phone and I feel just fine.”

“Yeah. Oh well, guess I’ll see ya later today when we head to the video arcade, huh?”

“Sure thing! I found a new trick with Megaman and War Machine on Marvel versus Capcom 2. I finally have a counter for that cheesy little combo you have with Dr. Doom! See you there in an hour, buddy! Bring lots of quarters!”

Scott showed up just as Mike was beginning to give up and start without him. Taking his walkman headphones off he gestured to Scotty. “Hey, over here, bud!” Mike yelled. Of course, wearing headphones himself, Scott couldn’t hear him, even if Mike’s voice had managed to carry over the voice and digital noise of the video arcade. Shaking his head, Mike reached out and pulled Scott through the crowd over to the game. “What kept ya, man? I was about to start without ya!”

“Sorry! The token machine on that side was broken, and there was a fifteen minute wait in the line for the other side.”

“Heh, don’t I know it. That’s why I buy MY tokens on off days, when it’s not busy, and save them up to bring them on days when I wanna play. C’mon, let’s start!”

The two friends played several games. Mike used a trick of charging the Mega Buster for half the game time, and attacking with kicks only, then releasing that charged up energy unexpectedly whenever he had an opening. The long held blast, magnified by being held so long, knocked Scott’s character for a loop, leaving him helpless to a barrage of Hyper Combo moves from Megaman and War Machine. After ten tried with a host of other characters, Scott graciously admitted defeat.

“Cheater,” he mumbled under his breath as they walked back home.

Mike burst into laughter. “Oh, so its CHEATING to charge the Mega Buster for thirty seconds then unleash it to hit you for 99 consecutive hits. But it WASN’T cheating when you figured out how to freeze me in mid-air with Dr. Doom and attack, then freeze me when I fall, never letting me touch the ground? HAH! Yer just mad that I found a way to beat you...finally!”

Scott put his headphones back on, switching on his Walkman. “Yeah yeah. I’ll find a way to counter that little trick soon enough. Still, it was a good game.

“Too true, good buddy, too true.” Placing his own headphones on, Mike turned on his Sony Discman and zoned out to the tunes of Eminem as he and Scott walked home. As always, the two boys hummed and sang along with their tunes as they played. They were nearly a block from Mike’s house when out of nowhere, Vinnie Renyolds and a few of his friends stepped from behind a couple of trees.

“Well well, what have we here? The salt and pepper version of the double mint twins!” Vinnie’s friends sniggered evilly, as the two boys glanced around, looking for an avenue of escape. The bully rarely attacked them off the school grounds, but it had happened once or twice. Apparently, for being away from school because of his throat, Vinnie decided that Scott was due a little private personal time to catch him back up again. “Come on, boys, how do you want yer lumps? It can be the easy way, or the hard way? What’s your pleasure?”

Geez, this is serious! Mike thought to himself, backing up slowly. He hasn’t messed with me in a while, since I started to bulk up a bit, but with his three friends, and a two-on-one advantage, we are toast if we don’t get out of here, and fast! Glancing at Scott, he saw the poor dumb idiot hadn’t even looked up to see why they had stopped. Eyes closed, he was jamming to the tunes coming through his Walkman.

“Scott!” Mike whispered, urgently, trying to get his attention. “Scott, cut it out! We are in trouble here!”

“You got that right, blackie!” Vinnie spat, walking up closer to the two boys. “I’ve been waiting for a chance to remind you of who the boss around here is. You think just because you have grown a bit that you don’t have to pay your dues anymore. Well guess what? It’s payback time, and I’m the collector!” Rearing back a fist, he readied himself to send his ham-sized fist into the young black kid’s face. But just then, at that moment, Scott opened his mouth and sang.

Mike opened his eyes, wondering why he wasn’t spitting teeth all over the sidewalk, and found...Vinnie and the others standing there like statues. Frozen. Vinnie had apparently stopped in mid-swing, his fist about three inches from Mike’s face. Disbelieving, he waved a hand in front of Vinnie’s glazed eyes. No response. “Whoa,” he said softly. “Talk about no one being home. Scott, did you see—”

Scott, still oblivious to what was happening, eyes closed, was air guitaring the bridge to Alice in Chain’s “Rooster”. Losing his last bit of patience, Mike grabbed the boy and shook him frantically. “Scott...will...you...pay...attention!” Scott opened his eyes then, turning off his Walkman and glancing around.

“Hey, ease up man, get a grip! What’s wrong with—holy SHIT!! VINNIE!!” Scott started to take off, his Mike held him.

“Its okay, bud, really. I mean, LOOK at them! They’re zombies. Its just like what happened in the hospital.”

“Yeah,” Scott said softly, walking around the four boys, still as life. “But why? What did it to them? Why are they like that, Mike? How did you do it?”

“It wasn’t me, man. I wish it was. To be able to do that to that big bully whenever I wanted to would be cool!” Mike’s eyes grew wide as realization hit him. “It wasn’t me at all! It was YOU Scott! YOU did it somehow!”

Scotty shook his head in denial. “NO WAY, man! It couldn’t have been me. I didn’t even notice they were here till you shook me. How could I—”

“You did it, Scott,” Mike said, firmly. “Somehow, some way, your voice did it. Vinnie was about to deck me just now when you suddenly burst out singing. When I looked again, everyone was frozen. That has to be it! Somehow your voice can freeze people.”

Thinking for a moment, Scott asked. “Well...it sounds crazy you know. But hell, in this day and age, anything is possible. One question though. Why aren’t you frozen like them? I mean, I’m glad yer NOT, but still, if I have this weird uncontrollable power, why aren’t you a zombie? I’m talking right now and you are just fine.”

“I thought of that too,” he replied. “It must be only when you sing. Like the doc said, those weird growths in your throats, like a whole new set of vocal chords. You can’t move them by talking, so normally you are don’t affect anything. But when you sing you use a whole different set of vocal chords...and those weird new ones inside your throat must be what freezes people. You didn’t get me because I couldn’t hear you singing. I only heard you saying something, and I knew you were singing, but I couldn’t hear you clearly because my own headphones were playing!” Mike grabbed Scott’s arms in excitement. “Scotty my man! Do you realize what this means?”

“Yeah, it means I really WILL have to quit the Chorus this year and join the band! OW!, let go of my arm!” Scott jerked away rubbing it. “I know what you are thinking, Mike. That we could pretty much rule the school. That I could freeze anyone that tried to mess with us, and we could have our run of anything we wanted. Well no deal, pal! I don’t WANT to be different, you hear me? I have been different all my life and all it got me was a load of trouble! Picked on, laughed at, bullied, ridiculed by everyone...just because I was smarter than them. And now this. Well no thanks, this is one Gift I don’t plan on developing to his highest potential.”

Turning away, Scott started to walk home, and Mike ran to catch up with him, leaving Vinnie and the other three boys frozen there. “Hey wait a minute!” Mike said softly. “Don’t tell me you have a weapon like THIS in your arsenal, and you don’t plan to use it? Think of what this could do for you, Scott. Think of what it could do for US! I’m telling you, not using this to the max will only make life harder. What do you plan on doing the next time a bunch of bullies corner us? Let them pound us into mush?”

“That’s...that’s different. Of course I would use it for self-defense. But not for personal gain, Mike. Leave it up to you, and we’d be knocking over banks, freezing the police in place to make our getaway!”

Mike considered it just for a moment, then shrugged. “You got me all wrong, Scoot. I wouldn’t suggest anything CRIMINAL or anything. But you have an amazing gift here, buddy, and NOT developing it, NOT seeing just how you could use it to make both our lives better...now that WOULD be criminal! And the only way you’ll be able to really depend on it when you need it is if you practice with it. Just like in band, the only way you cab truly develop your ability is to practice constantly. At least that’s what the band director, Mr. Norwood says.”

They arrived at Mike’s house. “Well just think about it, okay? No pressure, man. Just think about it.” He went up the stairs and into his house, leaving Scott alone with his thoughts. Walking home alone, he considered the ramifications of using his newfound abilities, and the consequences of using them. If he used it too much and other people found out about it, he’d be shunned even more than before. Worse, some mad scientist or government agent might hear about it and come after him, to dissect him or study him, to use as a weapon for them! On the other hand, he could basically freeze people in place with his voice. It was like having a bag full of candy on Halloween and being told not to eat any. The temptation to at least try it out now and then, to see just what he could really do, was overwhelming. And Dammit all, he actually LIKED to sing! It would be hard to listen to good music and not croak out a few lines along with the musician.

Maybe I can find a compromise, he thought to himself as he entered his own house.=, dodging the rain that was just starting to fall. Maybe there is a middle ground between using it and abusing it. After all, I wouldn’t want to become a bully like Vinnie, just because I have this new power. I’ve been on the other side of bullying and I know what it feels like. Okay, I’ll test my powers and see just what I can do with it, but if the temptation gets to be too much, I quit using it altogether.

(IV.)

Monday morning saw the two friends back in school again. Taking his lunch tray and sitting down next to Scott, Mike whispered, “So, what are you gonna do, Scott?”

Wiping his mouth, the boy replied. “I guess we could at least try and figure out exactly how it works, and why. I was actually kinda hoping that Vinnie would show up so we could try it out on him again. Where is he, anyway?”

Mike laughed. “Didn’t you hear? After we left him and his pals frozen on the sidewalk, it started to rain. They stayed out there frozen about an hour until somebody passing by starting yelling at them, wondering what they were doing. By the time they snapped out of it, they were all soaking wet. Vinnie’s mom called the principal and said he would be out for the next three days with the flu!”

Both boys chuckled at that. “Well,” Scott said after a bit, “I guess that shows that a person will most likely stay frozen until someone wakes them up out of it. That’s good to know. Now, the question is, just what happens to someone when they are frozen that way? We need to do another test.” Scott looked over at his friend, who despite his skin coloring visibly paled.

“Uh uh, oh no you don’t!” Mike said, backing up slightly. “Not me, Scott! C’mon man, don’t even joke about that! I’m your best buddy, remember? Friends to the end. No matter what happens, Scott, I want you to promise never to use your power on me, alright?”

Hiding a chuckle, Scotty agreed. “Of course, Mikey. I was just yanking your chain a bit. I’d never do that to you, bro! But it does create a problem you know. How can I use this gift around you and not enspell you too? I mean, you can’t go around wearing earphones in school. The teachers would just take them away from us, and give us both detention.”

“I thought of that as well,” Mike said, taking out a small pair of micro earplugs. “My older brother got these for me from work. They cut down noise and high frequency sounds by about seventy-five percent. With these in, hopefully I won’t be affected. And they’re so small, that the teachers won’t even notice I’m wearing them!”

“Yeah, but they’ll know something is up if they call your name and you can’t hear them,” Scott retorted.

“Details, details,” Mike said, exasperated. “Look, let’s just try testing your Gift again and see if the earplugs are even going to work. If they don’t I’ll have to come up with another plan anyway.”

“Okay. Who do we test it on?”

“Mmmm. How about....her?” Mike pointed to Vanessa, a cute little brunette. Vanessa was sophomore, a year ahead of them, and treated all the freshman boys as if they were dirt. Scott knew Mike had been attracted to Vanessa for years, but the older girl had shot him down every time he tried to talk to her. Poor guy. Vanessa was sitting alone at her usual table, eating, which meant that she would be an ideal subject, with no one to interfere, or complicate things. Mike no doubt had other motives in picking her, but Scott had to agree she was the perfect choice for a test run.

“C’mon, then. Let’s give it a try,” Scott said, as Mike slipped the plugs into his ears. Walking over to her table, Scott sat down across from Vanessa. The older girl blinked, then frowned at the unwanted intrusion.

“What do YOU want?” she said, dismissively, turning up her pert little nose.

“What makes you think I want something?” Scott said, placing his tray down. “Its a crowded lunch room, and I just wanted a place to sit and eat. That’s all.”

“Find someplace else, worm,” Vanessa said coldly. “This is a PRIVATE table.”

“Hey, I don’t see YOUR name written on it anywhere,” Mike said, plopping down next to her. Vanessa’s look of displeasure grew, and she started to pick up her tray and leave in disgust, when Scott opening his mouth.

Mikey looked at Scott curiously, who merely shrugged. “Voodoo. I dunno, that song just seemed appropriate for what we’re doing. After all, we are trying to put someone under our spell.”

His friend nodded. “And succeeding, apparently. Look at her. She’s a zombie just like the Vinnie and his crew the other day.” Mike was right. Vanessa was frozen in that same position, one hand on her tray, the other on the table, as if to push herself up into a standing position. “Oh this is just too cool!” Mike exclaimed. “I wonder if she would wake up if I squirted ketchup and mustard all over her face. By the time she noticed it, everyone would be laughing at her.”

“Mike!” Scott said in horror. “Don’t you dare do that! We’d get into trouble. Besides, for all we know, touching her would wake her out of it, and just imagine what she would do to you if she came to with you pouring ketchup on her face. She’d kill you, Mike. And it wouldn’t be pretty.”

“Yeah, got a point there,” Mike replied, closing his legs together. “I heard she is a real ball-buster when she gets pissed. Okay, so we have her frozen this way. Now what?”

Scotty thought for a moment. “Hey, Vanessa, can you hear me? This is Scott, the dweeb you were just dissin’’ a few seconds ago. Can you hear my voice?”

“Yes.”

Both boys nearly wet themselves. Mike had one leg up, and turned, ready to take off before noticing that Vanessa had still not moved. Curious, Scott moved closer. “Um, Vanessa, can you move your body at all?”

“Yes,” came the simple reply.

“Um, okay then. Let go of your tray and sit back down, as if you were about to finish eating your lunch.” Swiftly, the girl did just that, even placing a small napkin in her lap. Scott looked at Mike, who shrugged. “This is kewl Mike,” Scott said softly. “Its like she’s hypnotized or something! She’s not just frozen, it’s like her personality got turned off. I bet she’ll do whatever we tell her to do!”

“Excellent,” Mike said rubbing his hands together. This was just what he had been waiting for. “Vanessa, I command you to stand up and give me a big wet passionate kiss, on the mouth!” The girl remained frozen, not moving an inch. “Vanessa, I said stand up and kiss me. Now!” Still the girl sat. “Dammit, Scott, what’s wrong with her?”

“It has to be me!” Scott said, making the connection in his mind. “She’s my hypnotized slave, so she will only listen to me. Vanessa, stand up and kiss Mikey.” Obediently, the girl got to her feet, grabbed the surprised boy by the face, and gave him the deepest, most heart wrenching kisses he had ever received in his young life.

Catching his breath, Mike glanced at Vanessa, standing there impassive after completing her last command. “Well, I think I could get used to THAT,” he said after a moment. “But it sucks that only YOU can control her. I thought we were in this together, fifty-fifty. She listens only to you, Scott, so where does that leave me?”

“Okay okay, sheesh, if you’re going to be a baby about it. Vanessa, listen closely. I want you to do whatever Mike tells you to do. Obey him as you did me.” Mike smiled wickedly. “Uh, unless I say something to counteract his commands, that is,” Scott added quickly. Seeing Mike’s face, he smirked. “Hey, bro, I know you too well to give you absolute control over that poor girl. Remember, keep it low-key. We can STILL get into trouble for all of this you know!”

“Yeah yeah yeah,” Mike said dismissively. “Man, you have no sense of adventure. None. Well, lunch is about over. Vanessa and I have Pre-Calculus together, and you have English. See ya in study hall after next period, okay?”

“Sure. I’ll see ya then, man. And tell me how everything went. Remember, this is a scientific experiment, so observe everything and tell me about it later.” Mike nodded his agreement, and ordered Vanessa to go to class as if nothing had happened. Watching them leave, Scott put up his tray and headed to English.

The class was boring as usual, Scott having read most of the Ganfrey school library’s collection of books during his own free time. He listened with one ear open as he thought about his new power and how to develop it. Suddenly a word rang through his mind, spoken aloud by the teacher. Jerking up, he focused totally on what Ms. Rodgers was saying.

“...Bards, class. They were called Bards. Traveling entertainers, that spoke poetry, sang songs, and provided enjoyment for the medieval masses. In the olden days, there was no paper, only parchment scrolls and quill feathered ink pens. Writing utensils were very expensive, usually used only by the very wealthy, usually nobles, merchants, or royalty. So stories and songs for the common folk traveled mostly by word of mouth. Stories and songs of this nature were spread throughout the lands by the traveling minstrels and bards, whose melodic voices could easily charm the masses, enspelling them, bringing the stories to life in their minds. Why, some of these musicians were so good legends say they could even charm animals with their voices, making the wild beats into tame creatures. You know the saying, ‘Music hath charms to soothe the savage beasts’. Well it came from these Bards legendary abilities.” RIIIING! “Oh, there’s the bell. Class, I want you to read and study chapters three and four in your textbook on the medieval time period. We are having a test on Friday.”

The word resonated in his mind as he walked to study hall. Bard. Bard. BARD. Such a simple sounding word, yet the images it conjured up in his mind... Scott could almost see himself back in the olden days, dressed in multicolored garb, traveling the world, entertaining the masses with his enchanted songs, calming the creatures of the wild with a few simple words. Of course, it was all speculation, myths and legends from a time long ago. Still, the word wouldn’t leave his mind. Sitting down next to Mike he whispered, “I know what I am! I figured it out, Mike.”

“Shhh! Figured what out, man?” Mike said, glancing warily at Mr. Farmer’s desk. The older teacher was sitting there reading a newspaper, oblivious to the students for the moment.

“I figured out what this is, what my Gift does...and what I am.” Scott took a deep breath. “I am a modern day Bard.” Mike blinked, then blinked again, but otherwise didn’t react. “Hello? I said I am a Bard, Mikey. You know, like Edward, in that Final Fantasy 2 game? My voice can sing people to sleep, control their minds, charm beasts of the wild!”

“Whoa, time out!” Mike said softly. “Just where did you get THIS latest crazy idea from? What makes you think you are a mythical bard from a video game?”

“No, Dammit, not from the video game! I mean a true to life Bard, like they had in merry old England back in the dark ages. Ms. Rodgers was talking about it in English class. Everything she said applied to my new Gift, Mike! Its true. Just watch this!”

Standing up from his desk, Scott walked to the front of the class. Mr. Farmer frowned, and growled loudly, “What the heck do you think yer doing, son? Get back to your desk right now, or you can spend your study hall time in detention from now on!”

“Just a minute Mr. Farmer, I have something to say to the class.” Taking a deep breath, Scott began calling a square dance tune.

Obediently, everyone in class responded, including the teacher, Mr. Farmer, who was weaving a bit, trying to maintain his balance. Mike watched with delight as the study hall class danced eagerly to the tune Scott was calling. His own head felt a little fuzzy, as if Scott’s voice was starting to affect him as well, but the earplugs were filtering out most of the sound. Seventy-five percent, he recalled his brother saying. Maybe that remaining twenty-five percent was enough to make him feel a little light-headed.

Mandy, a girl on his left, grabbed Mike and pulled him into the dance, much to his chagrin. It wasn’t so bad, dancing with a very sexy young woman, one who was completely obedient and submissive. Mike found himself smiling at the wicked thought coming through his head. Then Scott’s next command was issued and he felt Mandy swat his ass, HARD! Hmm, maybe there ARE a few complications when your date is a mindless zombie, he thought to himself, pulling free of the girl.

Both Scott and Mike were surprised at the combinations squaring off in class. Scott’s instructions had been rather unclear, saying only to find the person in class you liked ‘the best’. Several boy-girl couples were singled on, and a few had three or five, or some other odd number, with two people liking the same person. But most surprising was the girl-girl combinations, and even one boy-boy combination. They quickly turned away from watching Wayne and Douglas kiss, but watched intently while Sara kissed Michelle, Evie kissed Chrissie, and Lisa and Rachel gave each other a passionate lip lock that sealed all the rumors that they two were lesbian lovers.

By now, the ruckus of the many student moving around had attracted some attention from the class downstairs. Scott could clearly hear Coach Edwards complaining loudly as he walked up the stairs, no doubt heading their way. Thinking fast, he began the final verse.

Everyone seemed to blink at the same time, then the low steady sound of whispered voices that was normal in study hall resumed. Everyone went right back to reading as if nothing strange had occurred. Mr. Farmer glanced up and frowned, as if just now noticing Scott standing by his desk. “What the heck do you think yer doing son? Get back to your desk right now, or you can spend—”

“Mr. Farmer, sir, please, I really REALLY gotta go use the bathroom! I mean REALLY bad!”

The old man sighed deeply, rolling his eyes. “Huh. Kids these days, can’t even hold their water. Fine, fine, you can go to the bathroom, but no funny business, young man. Here’s your hall pass.” At just that moment, Coach Edwards opened the door and barreled into the room.

“Farmer! What the hell are you and these kids doing in here! It sounds like a stampede of elephants dancing around from my class downstairs!”

Growling, the wizened old teacher grabbed the coach, taking him by the arm out into the hallway, where the two of them began arguing and yelling. All of the students got up from their desks and gathered at the door to listen in. Mike flashed Scott a shared smile, and the other boy laughed softly, walking down the hall to the boy’s restroom.

(V.)

The rest of the school year went pretty much the same way. Scott was content to limit his ‘testing’ of his new talent to one-on-one encounters with various students and teachers, never doing anything as outrageous as the study hall incident. Mike, of course, always pushed him to really explore the limits, to see what he could get away with, but Scott managed to keep the unwarranted episodes to a minimum. Interestingly enough, the friends had few encounters with Big Vinnie that year. The bully had apparently been so freaked out coming to in the middle of the rain after trying to pound them, that he had wanted little or nothing to do with them.

“Feels kinda weird doesn’t it?” Scott replied one day.

“What does?”

“NOT being picked on or bullied by Vinnie anymore,” Scott said, glancing around the lunch room. “Look at me, Mike. I’m actually putting on weight for a change! Without Vinnie, I actually get to EAT my lunch nowadays, and I don’t get all that exercise from running for my life.” The two boys burst out laughing at that.

“Yeah I know what you mean. I used to always get fussed at by tha folks over my dirty and torn clothes, and my pop was always raggin’ on me for fighting. Well with you around, buddy, I won’t ever have to throw a punch again.”

Scott sighed deeply. “Yeah. But I would think there is a higher purpose in all of this, yanno? This Gift...I can pretty much control the minds of anyone that hears me sing. There has to be a reason this happened to me, and not to just anyone. I mean, why me instead of you, Mike? You would LOVE to be able to do this, while its more of annoyance to me. SIGH I used to sing all the time when I listened to music, in the shower, while riding in the car, yanno, whenever the mood hit me. Now, I have to be careful, else I could turn everyone in town into a mindless zombie!”

“Don’t sweat it, pal,” Mike replied. “It’s like my grandma always said. ‘Them that have, will have, and those who don’t shall do without.’ So you have this Gift, or Curse, however you wish to look at it. It’s a tool like everything else, to be used when needed. And yer right. I DO wish it had been me instead of you, but at least it happened to a friend of mine.”

Scott let out a small burp and patted his stomach. “Mmmm. Never knew school food could taste so good. Okay, I’m done. Since the period is half over, wanna go to the library? I was thinking we could get online on the school’s internet account and look up more about this thing.”

“Cool. I’m down with that. I have been working on a new little program of my own to bypass the school’s Cyber Patrol lock out. Man, I can’t wait to check out those porno sites!” Scott rolled his eyes. Sometimes Mike could be so juvenile.

The librarian told them they had several computer open, being the lunch period, and that they could make themselves at home. Mike ran his program, while Scott began browsing, and within minutes both boys were deeply absorbed in their browsing. After a few moments, Scott called over to Mike’s cubicle. “Hey Mike, you won’t believe this, but I think I found something. I went to the International Medical Database, cross-referencing all types of throat and respiratory disorders, checking for any type of unexplained growths or tumors, and then I filtered out anything unrelated. Then—”

“Okay, okay, spare me the boring details, Mr. Spock,” Mike said sarcastically. “What’s the bottom line?”

“Yes. Well, the bottom line is, there have been at least two other cases in the past five years to match mine—and Dr. Stewart filed mine as well, by the way, its listed as well. Two girls, both with strange unexplainable growths on their vocal chords at the onset of puberty. The doctors ran the usual battery of standard tests, with no more insight than Dr. Stewart. The girls recovered, though, with no adverse affects, and the doctors filed the standard reports, with nothing unusual noted. If it hadn’t happened to me, and I hadn’t known what to look for, I never would have noticed it.”

Mike frowned, slightly. “So in other words, you think there are possibly two others out there with powers like yours, and that they had their doctors change the reports to make it seem as if nothing out of the ordinary occurred?”

“Possibly. Or maybe simply using their Gift for the first time did something to the doctor like I did to Dr. Stewart. All I managed to say was ‘Ahhh’ during my time in the hospital, and it was enough to fry her brain cells. Nothing in my report makes it seem anything out of the ordinary either.” Scotty shrugged. “Oh well. No real insight into this thing, but at least I know I’m not the only one.”

“Mmmhmmm. Interesting,” Mike said idly, his fingers busily typing away. Scott’s curiosity got the better of him then, and he got up and walked around to Mike’s cubicle.

“Okay, so what has your attention so completely? What are you looking up over here anyway?” Scott sat down, expecting to see pictures of naked women in a variety of sexual acts. Instead, Mike was busy scrolling down a long page of text, and busily saving page after page onto his diskette. “Huh? What is all this? I thought you’d be looking up the porno sites! Where are all the naked pictures?”

Mike stopped typing briefly and looked up. “Oh. Those. I already looked up bunches of those already while you were still looking up medical files. I book marked the good ones, by the way, in case you wanna check ‘em out later. But as I listened to you talk about the others like yourself, I came across this website. The Erotic Mind Control Archive, Scott! Thousands and thousands of stories about people hypnotizing their victims and having their way with them in any way they choose! I was curious and read a few by this one person, ‘Colleen’ something—she totally blew me away! Scotty, my man, we have been going about this all wrong! Instead of joking around, or getting out of trouble with teachers and such, or dodging bullies, we should be using this Gift of yours to get girlfriends!”

“Wait a minute! Whoa slow down, Mikey,” Scott said, putting up his hands in protest. “I thought we agreed in the beginning not to go about abusing this Gift, not using it unless it was an emergency, a life, death, or gonna-get-pounded-to-dust situation? Experimenting to test my limits is one thing, but taking over some girl’s mind and remaking her personality just to get dates? That’s going a bit too far, Mike, even for you.”

Mike hmphed, crossing his arms. “Oh yeah, like I’m sure it never crossed your mind before, Scott. I’ve seen the way you glance over at Michelle Adams now and again when you think no one is looking. You have got the hots for her, man. And THAT is sad, especially after what happened in study hall that time. She likes WOMEN, Scott. It’s the new millennium, and that thing is kinda in now. It’s cool. It’s even trendy. But face it, you’ll never get anywhere with her...unless you use your Gift.”

Blushing hotly, Scott opened his mouth to reply, when the bell rang. “C’mon,” Mike said. “We don’t wanna be late for class. At least I don’t; you could always mesmerize the teacher and make her forget you were tardy—if you felt it was a big enough emergency.” With that, Mikey stormed off. Shaking his head, Scott followed him out of the library. But his words kept circling around in his head all through class that day.

(VI.)

Months passed. Winter came and went, and with the settling in of spring, Scott found himself struggling even harder to reject Mike’s increasingly tempting suggestions on the use of his powers. Against his better judgment he had read some of the stories Mike had downloaded, and he found the concept greatly appealing. The archive had a vast wealth of stories, ranging from the sweet and playful, to the intense and sensual, to the dark and malevolent. Over the winter holidays, Scott had bypassed his home computer’s Cyber Watch program and accessed the website, which rapidly become a treasured favorite. He found himself enamored by the works of trilby else, Mesmerr, and a host of others. But the author that most intrigued him was the outspoken cat’s sara. A dynamic writer, she was expressively gay, and her stories centered almost exclusively on the main character seducing and subjugating a young woman, enslaving her totally, and even changing her sexual orientation to the controller’s liking. Scott thought about Michelle as he read sara’s stories, and soon began a habit of masturbating late at night in bed, reading printed copies of the stories. At night, the twisted tales would wrap themselves around his somnulent mind, as he dreamed of himself doing the same things to the unsuspecting Michelle, changing her, making her into his willing and submissive love-slave.

Yet and still, he resisted. If nothing else, the archive imprinted on him very clearly that the stories were largely that—just stories. The deepest and most open expression of the repressed fantasies and desires of several people. The archive even came with a warning, that the things written about weren’t to be attempted at home, and that only a sick individual would even THINK of doing so. Scott continued to tell himself that as school began again, and he passed the object of his affection day after day in the halls. Mike was no help, taking every opportunity to point out the obvious. Scott even began calling his best pal Darth, for the way he kept trying to bring him over ‘to the dark side’.

Scott held fast to his ideals and his morals. He knew that a great Gift came with much responsibility, and he was determined to be responsible, despite the temptation. It was hard, but he managed to hold his baser desires in check. Then an incident happened to finally break the young man’s resolve.

The Spring Fling Ball.

Two weeks before the big dance, couples started matching up. Boys and girls that had barely noticed each other during the rest of the year suddenly became best friends. Mike even managed to wrangle a date for the dance, much to Scott’s chagrin. “Vanessa? Snooty, nose-in-the-air Vanessa?” Scott was bewildered. “How on earth did you manage that?”

Mike laughed. “You snooze, you lose, Scotty my boy! I thought ahead, that’s all. Remember at the beginning of the year when you put her under your spell? You told her to do whatever I commanded her, for as long as the spell lasted. Well, during that time, I made a few...ahem...suggestions to her, yanno, to test the limits of what she would and would not do. Well, buddy boy, one of the things I did was convince her that she would absolutely LOVE to go to any and all school dances with me. Me and ONLY me. Of course, I had no idea whether it would work, whether she would still obey the suggestion after she woke up again. But just this morning I found out the answer.” Mike chuckled. “You should have seen her face, Scott! Poor girl looked so confused, and so uncomfortable. She really wanted to go to the dance with me, with her whole heart and soul, she just didn’t understand why. I mean, she hated me all year long, but this morning as soon as they posted the Spring Fling Ball, I became her perfect date! It almost would have been worth turning her down just to see what would happen.”

Scott squirmed uncomfortably. “Yeah, well if I had known you were gonna use her like that while she was under, I wouldn’t have given you control.”

“Oh? Why is that, Scotty? Did you plan to take her to the dance yourself?” Mike said smirking. “Face it Scott, yer even more pale than usual when you try to hide your feelings. I can read you, man! You don’t as much feel guilty about Vanessa as you feel anxious about doing the same to Michelle to get her as your date. Will you bite the bullet for a change and be a MAN about it, for heaven’s sake? You want to go to the dance with her, take her. But you better hurry up before someone else asks her.”

So Scott decided to do just that. He would simply stop her in the hallway between classes and ask her, without using his Gift. At best, she would say YES, and at worst, all she could do is turn him down. It would be no big deal, he had been turned down before, and possibly having the object of his dreams turn him down cold would be like a splash of cold water, waking him from his adolescent fantasies.

Picking his moment just right, he waited until she was alone, at her locker, and the halls were mostly clear. Steeling his resolve, Scott walked forward, and cleared his throat. “Uuuummm...hi there. Can I talk to you a minute, Michelle?”

The long-legged, dark-haired beauty glanced up at him and smiled. “Oh. Hi. Uh...Scott isn’t it? Yeah, sure, we can talk, but make it fast, I gotta get to class before the bell rings.”

“Yeah, me too. We’re heading to the same class. Pre-Calculus.” Scott looked down at his shoes. Damn, we’ve been in the same class all year and she doesn’t even know I have Pre-Cal with her? This is going well. “Um, I was wondering if anyone has asked you to the Sp—”

“Hey ‘Chelle, what’s up?” Lisa asked, coming up behind with about six other girls in tow. “Are you coming over to my house today after school? My mom has, like, this totally wicked dress picked out for me for the Spring Fling. You and the girls have totally gotta check it out!”

“Of course, Leese,” Michelle grinned. “I wouldn’t miss it. My dad is taking me shopping to pick out my dress tomorrow, on his day off.”

“So, has anyone asked you out yet?” another girl, Jill, asked idly. Scott felt himself blush. The girls were completely ignoring him, as always, but most of all, they had interrupted him at the worst possible moment. The bell would ring in two minutes, and they would all leave any second without him getting to ask Michelle out. Bite the bullet and be a man Mike had said. Well, this was his chance.

“Not really,” Michelle was answering, with a giggle. “Tony acted like he was going to ask in third period, but he chickened out at the last second. Teehee. Boys are just so funny when it comes to—”

“Ahem,” Scott said again, getting their attention. When everyone was looking his way, he spoke again. “Um, well, actually I was just about to ask Michelle to the dance. Michelle, would you like to go to the Spring Fling with me?”

Time stood still for a moment. The words hung in the air, so still and thick that Scott thought he could actually see them. His eyes locked onto Michelle’s face, saw her cute pert nose wrinkle up slightly as she took the question in. Her face seemed to change in slow motion, and belatedly realizing the response would not be a pleasant one, Scott wished he could take the words back. But it was of course too late.

“What?” she asked incredulously. “What did you just ask me? To go to the school dance...with YOU?!?” The other girls looked at each other in complete surprise for a split second before bursting into laughter. Scott’s already red face turned a deeper shade. “Me, go to the dance with an unknown loser like you!” Michelle laughed, holding her stomach. “Oh oh oh...that is just too funny! Hehehehhee!”

“Why don’t you ask your loser friend Mike to go with you?” Jill said through a keening laughter. “At least that way you’d be with someone your social equal.”

“Oh GAWD this is like so very kewl!” Lisa said chuckling. “Oh my, I needed a good laugh after English today. Imagine, the thought of ANYONE going to the dance with a nobody like HIM!” All of them burst out into laughter again. By now the commotion had brought a whole new crowd of onlookers to find out what was going on. Several guys now joined in on the laughter, adding their own comments and jokes.

“What a dweeb! Asking out a beautiful chick like that? What were you thinking?”

“Hah, what a loser!”

“Probably end up taking his grandma to the dance with him. Hah Hah Hah!”

“Geek!”

“Wuss!”

“Prick!”

Unable to bear it anymore, Scott pushed his way through the crowd, running to the bathroom. Whistles and catcalls followed him, as well as Michelle’s haunting voice. “Ah, look, we made him cry. Boo hoo, little Scott Nobody. Boo hoo!” Closing the door behind him, Scott sat on one of the toilet seats and let the tears fall. For the first time since kindergarten, he had let the jibes and taunts get to him. All his life he had pushed down his feelings, hid the hurts their callous words had caused. It had ceased to affect him after a while. But somehow, hearing Michelle’s words, seeing her face, it had somehow opened up all the past indignities he had suffered, brining them all out at once, and it was all too much to bear. So he sat down and cried and cried, ashamed of his weakness, and cried even more.

After a very very long time, Scott became aware of someone standing over him. “Feeling better now, I hope?” Michael asked quietly. “You know, this is the first time I’ve ever seen you cry, dude. You have taken beatings that would make Mike Tyson bawl like a baby, and never uttered a sound. You’ve been cut down and laughed at by kids and grown-ups alike, and never batted an eye. Hell, we’ve been through it together, and I’ve fallen apart on ya before. That bitch must have really hurt you to make you come unglued like this.”

Sighing deeply, Scott shook his head. “No. Not really. Michelle didn’t say or do anything that anyone else hasn’t done a hundred million times before. It’s just...Mike, I really really LIKED her, man. I know it’s stupid, and like you keep telling me, it has zero chance of happening. But I couldn’t help how I felt, yanno? I...I just had to try.”

Mike nodded. “You put your heart on the line, and she took it and stomped on it. Worse, she did it in front of everyone, which hurt even worse. Scott, forget what I said about using your Gift for personal gain. Forget about using it as a last resort, or when you get into trouble as a way out. Forget all that bullshit. Scotty, you and I have been pushed around by everyone our entire lives. I say its payback time. Starting with Michelle. What do you say?”

Inside Scott, the war between his desires and his morals intensified. Michelle’s mocking voice rippling through his head, her cruel thoughtless words taunting him, fueling his dark desires and ambitions, strengthening them. A moment later, his desire for revenge won out over his ideals, and he looked at his friend and smiled wickedly. “I say, we do it. Let’s show them all just who they’ve been messing with! I’m with you Mikey. All the way.”

(VII.)

Michelle and Lisa were laughing while the walked along the sidewalk, on their way home after a fun day spent at the mall, then over at Jill’s house. It was Saturday, and with school, and particularly Monday’s little incident the farthest thing from their minds, they had given into the freedom of the day with gusto. Both girls carried packages from the mall, various clothes and shoes bought with their well-to-do parents’ credit cards. Lisa was complaining a little as they walked, at Michelle’s very good fortune.

“Man, I cannot believe you scored such a sweet pair of boots before I did!” Lisa said, pouting. Her soft pink lips turned up slightly, a look she had used often to turn many a boy’s brain to mush. “The last pair in the entire store, and you just happened to find them! What a jip!”

“Sorry, Leese,” Michelle said with a giggle. “You snooze, you lose! Besides, you have way more pairs of boots than I do already. Clothes shopping with you is always a contest to see who can pick up all the best stuff first! Like that pink silk blouse you picked up in Virginia’s...oh, I’d almost KILL to get my hands on one like that in my size!”

“Yeah,” Lisa said, somewhat mollified by the admission of her own good luck. “It is a, like, totally killer blouse. And it goes with that little outfit I bought last weekend too! But, oh I wanted those boots soooo bad!”

Michelle grinned, hugging her friend closely. “Well, play your cards right, and maybe I’ll let you borrow them sometime. Now quit pouting, you came out way better shopping than I did.”

The conversation moved on to topics of television shows, music, and how annoying baby brothers could be—both girls had a younger brother that they believed to be punishment for evil deeds done in a past life—and the two friends didn’t even notice the two boys standing along the sidewalk until they were nearly upon them. “Ewww,” Lisa said as they got close enough to see who it was. “Speaking of very annoying pests, look at who is waiting for us!”

“Afternoon, ladies,” Mike said with a grin, stroking his chin lightly with a finger. “Nice day isn’t it?”

“It was, till now,” Lisa murmured, making it a point not to make eye contact with either boy.

“What do you guys want, Mike?” Michelle asked in a resigned voice. She had a feeling she knew what was coming next, and steeled herself for it. She didn’t fear that the boy’s would do anything physical to her, but after the embarrassment Scott had felt, she expected to get an earful.

“Tsk, tsk. Not exactly a friendly response is it? I mean, Scotty and I were just standing here talking when we noticed you two girls walking this way. And we are even being nice, after the totally HARSH way you and your little friends came down on him like that. But, well Scotty was always a nice guy.”

“Yeah, well you know what happens to nice guys,” Lisa murmured softly.

“Listen, we have nothing more to say with each other,” Michelle replied. “I don’t want to go to the Dance, or anywhere else, with either one of you! It’s nothing personal, it’s just that I wouldn’t want to be caught dead in the company of two little NOBODYs like you.” She turned and walked past the Scott and Mike. “You two nerds are supposed to be so smart, I would have thought I made all this clear enough on Monday in the hallway.”

Scott stepped forward quickly. “Hey, Michelle, I understand how you feel. But please, just wait a second. Just one second. I have something to say to you that might just change your mind.”

Both girls stopped, amused. Lisa laughed loudly. “Oh? This should be, like, so good. What do YOU have to say that could possibly change her mind?”

Scott smiled then, his teeth bared in a feral grin that lacked any and all good intent. Lisa and Michelle actually backed up a step at the sight. “Oh, nothing, really,” Scott replied, clearing his throat. “Only this:

Scott closed his mouth and waited a moment or two. The two girls swayed gently a bit, their eyes glazed, their mouths slightly ajar. By now, after months of practicing, he knew exactly what was happening to his victims. His a capella rendering of Metallica’s ‘Unforgiven’ had dulled their mind, and squashed their wills into nonexistence. He would wait a few moments for their numbed minds to settle a bit, depriving them of his voice, so that when he spoke moments later they would be very attentive and receptive to anything that he told them. When both girls let out a small sigh, he knew they were primed and ready.

“Now then, girls. This is Scott Littlejohn, your lord and Master. I want you to pay very close attention to what I am about to say. My voice is the only voice that you hear, the only voice must obey.” He turned and grinned at his friend, who quietly observed and took out a small sheet of paper. He and Scott had worked out exactly what to say beforehand, to make sure there were no mistakes and that they left out nothing. Scott read then reread the paper before speaking again.

“Michelle,” he said, moving to stand right in front of the girl, “listen and obey. My voice is now the sound of your inner voice, the sound of your own thoughts. Everything I speak to you while you are in this state is your truth, your law. What you may personally feel is of no consequence, because I am your inner voice, your conscience, and your conscience ALWAYS knows what is right.” He glanced at the paper again. “When I awaken you, Michelle, you will find your feeling for me changing, slowly and subtly. At first, you will find that I am not as bad as you thought, then slowly come to realize that I am sorta cute. As you think on me more and more, you will find yourself growing more and more infatuated with me. Every time you think about me, or hear or read my name, you will fall more and more in love with me. I will slowly become an obsession with you. By the time of the Spring Fling in two weeks, you will be so deeply and helplessly in love with me that you will find yourself unable to concentrate on anything but being with me. I shall begin to haunt your daydreams and fantasies, and you will dream of me at night. Nod if you understand all that I have said.”

Michelle’s eyes blinked several times, moving up and to the side wildly, as if her mind were a computer processing information. After a moment or two, she nodded stiffly. Mike gave Scotty a thumbs-up sign, and grinning, he continued his list. “Very good Michelle. Now listen carefully. Being around me, being in your Master’s presence, will excite you. After today, you will find yourself becoming sexually excited just being near me, and the closer you are to me, the more aroused you will become.” Scott thought for a moment. “Tell me, Michelle, and answer me openly and honestly. Have you ever masturbated before?”

The girl tensed slightly, clearly not wishing to answer, but under the spell of Scott’s bardic voice she could not resist. “Y-y-yes...I have. I masturbate... at least...once or twice...a week.”

Scott grinned. “And do you fantasize when you frigg yourself off?”

“Y-y-yes.”

“And who do you fantasize about?”

Michelle really grew tense then, almost shaking her head, trying to deny the answer pouring out of her mouth. “Different people. Sometimes...its with boys from class...Tim Harris, the quarterback...James Henry, the senior track captain...the actor, G-g-george Clooney,” Scott had to fight hard to keep from snickering. “And... and...sometimes I fantasize about...Lisa.” Mike grew wide-eyed, but Scott merely nodded. “And Jill,” Michelle added before growing silent again.

“I see,” Scott replied. “Well it seems that you are bi-sexual. Not a bad thing for a future girlfriend and mind-controlled slave. Might be fun having you and Lisa both together. Never done that before.”

“Oh who are you trying to kid, Scotty,” Mike broke in. “You’re still a virgin, you haven’t done ANYTHING before!”

“Hey, so are you, Mike!” Scott shot back. “Now quiet, you’re messing this up!”

“Messing up what? You told her that she can hear only your voice, not mine. Just keep going.”

“Tch, fine,” he murmured. “Okay, Michelle, time for your last instructions. From now on, all your sexual fantasies revolve around me. I want you to keep your sexual fantasies about other women, that kinda turns me on too, but from now on, I’m the only man you find attractive in any way. What’s more, your fantasies and desires will involve you being submissive to me, your Master. You will dream of me dominating you, making you serve me as my complete slave, doing anything and everything I wish. These feelings of submission will also increase over time, just as the effect of being in my presence, and your feelings of attraction to me will increase. When you awaken, you will not remember any of this, of course. Only in your subconscious will you know these instructions.” Mike tapped him on the shoulder. “Oh yeah, almost forgot. Whenever you hear me, and only me, say the words, My little ‘Chelley-welley, you will fall back into a trance, falling back to this same level. Do you understand everything I’ve instructed you to do?”

“Yes,” Michelle said softly. “I understand.”

“Good girl. And Lisa, don’t think I have forgotten about you.” Scott smirked wickedly. “Lisa, from now on, whenever anyone says your name, you will bark like a dog. You will have no memory of it, even if you hear a recording of you doing so, but you will bark every time someone calls your name. Also, your sense of style and fashion is now reversed. Consciously, you still wish to dress and look nice, but from now on you will always wear exactly the opposite of what you think is trendy and stylish. In fact, the trashier and sleazier, the more it appeals to you.”

“Yeah, that’ll fix her,” Mike agreed heartily. “Hit her where it hurts, in her social standing. Let her know what it’s like to be unpopular for a while.”

“Exactly,” Scott said. They had planned this for the past several days, and were anxiously looking forward to seeing the results on Monday morning. “Okay, that’s about it for you as well, Lisa. When you awaken, you will consciously remember none of this, but will know all my instructions in your subconscious. Just like Michelle, you will fall instantly back into trance whenever I speak a special phrase. Your code words are Lisa Lisa, baby-face. Answer me if you understand.”

“Yes, I, like, understand,” Lisa said softly after a moment.

“Good girl. Okay. When I count to three, you two girls will awaken, and remember nothing from the moment that I started to sing. One...two...three!”

Both girls blinked, then frowned. “Well?” Michelle said after a moment. “What did you have to tell me that was so earth-shattering it would change my mind about going to the dance with you?”

“Hmmmm,” Scott said, as if in thought. “You know what? I really can’t think of anything to say. I guess you are right then. You’re better off going to the dance with someone else. Guess I’ll see you around in school.”

“Not if we see you first,” Lisa quipped, walking away. Michelle simply shook her head and followed closely behind. The two boys waited till they were both out of hearing range, then burst out laughing.

“Man, that was sooo great!” Mike said after a moment or two. “For a change, I can hardly wait for the weekend to be over. Monday morning is going to be very VERY interesting.”

“Oh yeah, Mikey, very interesting. But we’ve only just begun. If everything goes well on Monday, we’re going to go on to step two: the subjugation of the school faculty. Once we have the teachers and the principal under our control, its an easy thing to take care of the students, until you and I literally run the entire school! No one is EVER going to push us around again.”

Mike nodded slowly as they walked back towards their homes. It was a wee bit unnerving to hear his normally straight-arrowed friend speak this way, eagerly looking forward to enslaving the entire school. Usually, it was HE that wanted to rush headlong into things, and Scott was the calm, logical voice of reason. While he wanted to proceed with things as much as Scotty did, he wondered a bit at Scott’s fervor and enthusiasm. He was reminded of a phrase his Grandmother had used often enough: ‘Power inevitably corrupts, and absolute power corrupts, absolutely.’ Scott’s Gift was far from absolute, but it was growing stronger every day, as was his skill in using it. As he bid his friend goodbye and walked up the steps to his house, he wondered to himself.

Could corruption truly be far behind?