Claude Poitiers turned on the television in the corner and sat down in front of his computer.

It had been a long day, and he had to work tomorrow -- so he wouldn't start any big projects. He answered his email, poked around on usenet for a bit... then logged into hypnoplay, his favorite chatroom.

Business was slow, as always. There were a dozen people in the room, and no one was saying anything. All too typical, Claude thought. He started typing.

He remembered when this room had first opened, six to eight months ago. There had always been a running conversation. There had been times he'd been sorry to log out, because he didn't want to miss anything.

That never happened anymore. Nowadays, all the regulars stayed logged in at all hours, whether they were behind the keyboard or not. Conversation was rare.

He'd seen this pattern before. Chatrooms would start up, be furiously popular for a few months, then die out.

Claude went to work in another window, and checked the chatroom ten minutes later. Someone had mentioned something about the White Sox, but Claude didn't respond. The only team he followed was the Yankees, and he wasn't going to comment on something he didn't know about.

I'm just as bad as everyone else, Claude thought. I log in to the chatroom and don't say anything. Still, surely talking just to waste bandwidth isn't an improvement?

Claude chuckled. He'd just witnessed the one thing that could make a chatroom come to life: a girl walking in.

Claude had been around the block enough times to know that anyone logging into a chatroom with a feminine alias gets inundated by males propositioning her. That's why many women choose genderless nicknames. It's also why a lot of (male) practical jokers log in pretending to be women, and get a big laugh about their pranks afterwards.

Claude did a double-take. The girl (if it truly was a girl) had sent him a private message? She'd sent him one first? That was unusual.

Claude sighed. Intellectually, he knew this stuff went on all the time, but it was still sad to see it when it happened.

He laughed.

Huh? Claude double-checked the screen. No, he hadn't misread her question.

He used the whois command.

Buffalo.edu, Claude thought. Isn't that New York State? Feeling like a total geek, he checked his own identity.

There's no way she could know from my address, Claude reasoned. Oh well. He decided he'd have to use the oldest means of gaining information, and ask.

Well, at least she wasn't using the old a/s/l shorthand for age, sex and location. Assuming, Claude reminded himself, that ayanna's really a she! He typed his answer, asking for hers... then remembered you're not supposed to ask a lady her age. He scratched his head, then figured, what the heck, it's the internet era. He sent the message.

Whoa, thought Claude. Whoa. Did she have any idea she was asking about his major turn-on? She must, given the title of the chatroom.

Claude's heart beat a little faster. He felt like a moth diving towards a flame. With a sigh, he wished stories like this didn't always capture his interest; but that was the blessing of chatrooms, wasn't it? No one could actually see with whom they were conversing. From wherever she was sitting, Ayanna couldn't see him blushing.

Claude almost asked for more details, but stopped himself. He did want to hear more -- but he didn't need instant gratification.

He gave her his honest opinion.

He shrugged, and told her the truth.

Claude stared at the screen. He got up, turned the television off, and sat down again.

He took a deep breath. That was quite a compliment for someone he'd just met -- assuming she was telling the truth, of course.

Claude stared at the computer screen, stunned. He couldn't believe his eyes. A girl just propositioned him online and gave him carte blanche? This kind of thing didn't happen to him.

He frowned. Common sense told him that if something seemed too good to be true, it probably was. Chances were Ayanna wasn't 19... heck, she probably wasn't even a girl.

He scrolled up a bit and reread their conversation. She didn't sound contrived. Still, they hadn't been chatting for very long, and heavens knew there were plenty of good actors on the internet. Someone can act out almost anything, Claude knew, when they can keep their expression and tone of voice hidden.

On the other hand... why lie? If Ayanna was a 45-year-old man like Dreamlord, what possible reason would he have to get Claude to type out a hypnotic induction in a chatroom? He could just go to the web to find one of those.

That describes most of the women on the planet, Claude thought. Still, he reasoned, if I ask for any more details, she'll probably get scared away. What's more, with all the practical jokers on the internet, she'd be right to do so.

He left the chatroom and closed the other windows on his computer screen.

Claude thought for a moment. Was he forgetting anything?

"All right," Claude typed. "Just concentrate on the words I type as they move across your screen... don't let anything else distract you... just focus here on the monitor, on my words, and let your body relax. Keep your eyes focused on the text as it moves across your screen... let any noise you hear just relax you more... the wind is a relaxing, everyday noise... anything else you hear is so mundane and ordinary it just serves to relax you more. Feel yourself breathing easily and regularly, in and out, in and out, listening to your body, letting your legs relax and go limp..."

(Dang, Claude thought... I should have asked if she's in a wheelchair.)

"Your feet and legs are feeling so relaxed now," he typed, "as your eyes move back and forth across the computer screen, reading the text as it scrolls by... it's a beautiful evening, so calming and relaxing..."

(Claude looked out the window. It was early evening; the sky had wispy clouds, and the stars were just beginning to come out. He hoped the weather in Buffalo was as good as it was here in Providence.)

"A wonderful evening to be quiet at home, to be relaxed and focused on what you're doing," he typed. "My words move across the screen, your eyes follow the words as they appear and scroll... and now your torso is becoming so relaxed... with each breath you take, your whole body becomes more relaxed... letting go of any cares, any worries... as you breathe in, you feel calmness stealing all over your body... and as you breathe out, you feel all stress leaving you...

"Now your arms are becoming very relaxed too... let them fall away from the keyboard and mouse and relax by your sides, or on your lap... feel the tingles of deep relaxation in your fingers, in your arms, in your shoulders... and you become more and more relaxed with each word you read, so completely focused on the words that move across your screen...

"And now feel that relaxation all over your body... feel it in your neck, which is becoming completely relaxed... you can still hold your head in a comfortable position to keep your focus on the screen and on reading my words, but your neck is becoming very relaxed, completely relaxed... and now your head is relaxing too... every sound you hear, everything you see, makes you more and more comfortable, more and more calm, more and more relaxed... and even though your whole body is relaxed, from your toes, through your midsection, to your neck, your eyes stay focused on my words as they scroll across your screen... you are feeling completely relaxed, even in your head, from the top of your head to your ears to your nose and mouth... your eyes focused on my words as they move across your screen, you are completely relaxed, not a care in the world..."

(Long distance hypnosis, thought Claude. How he wished he could be there in person, to see this happening... if it really was, of course. She could be faking... but did it really matter, if they both were having fun?)

"And now you feel your eyes getting tired... your whole being is focused on my words, and your eyes are following them easily and readily... your eyes move back and forth, back and forth, as my words scroll across your screen...

"And now, as I count down from three to one, your eyes will become so heavy and relaxed that they will close, and you will fall into a deep sleep, a deep and relaxed sleep... and you will enjoy this deep relaxed feeling all through your body... you will sit there, contented and happy, for one minute, after which you will open your eyes, sit up, feeling totally relaxed all through your body and mind, and still you will still be completely, totally, focused on my words... when you open your eyes, you will type to me how you feel...

"And now, three... your eyes are getting so heavy and relaxed from moving back and forth...

"Two... your eyelids are getting heavier and heavier... you will not be able to keep them open much longer... and on the next count you will sleep peacefully for one minute, then open your eyes and type to me how you feel...

"On the next count, deep sleep... one.

Claude took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

A minute passed.

So far so good, Claude thought.

Now how do I make her feel like she's really hypnotized? Claude wondered.

Claude crossed his fingers.

A moment or two elapsed.

There was no response from ayanna for a moment. Then...

Claude pondered this. Ayanna must be playing hard to get, he thought... or else she'd have just used the backspace key and not told him she had another request.

What would he make her do, he thought -- drive over from Buffalo and do his laundry?