CHANGING PLACES
Chapter 1
It was the perfect place to get away from the crowded campus of Claremont College. A small private garden on the very edge of campus that went overlooked by most students. Cherie had discovered it several weeks ago and now came there regularly with a book to read or even just to relax. The garden must have been laid out many years ago, because it looked as though someone had taken great care in organizing the shrubbery and creating spaces that lent themselves to peace and quiet. The garden was bordered by a high chain-link fence that ran for some distance with small signs that read “Claremont Female Institute — No Trespassing.” Looking past the shrubbery and the fence, Cherie could see several women walking around the grounds of the Institute. She was not entirely sure what the Institute was, although she guessed it was some form of medical facility.All of the women were dressed similarly in a white cotton gown that hung just below the knee, white crew socks and white sneakers. The temperature was cool and several of the women wore navy blue cardigan sweaters.
Cherie paid little attention to the fence, the women or the signs and settled down on one of the benches to read a few chapters from her latest romance novel. She had been there for almost an hour when she heard a sound from near the fence.
“Psssst. Pssst.” She turned and looked over her shoulder toward the fence. At first, she ignored the noise, but the woman was persistent. “Pssst. Pssst.” Cherie put down her book and walked toward the fence. She was surprised at how similar she was to the woman. Both about 5′6″, 120 pounds, dirty blonde hair. In another place, they could have been sisters.
“I’m sorry to bother you, but I never get to see people outside the Institute, and I was hoping that we might talk. My name’s Wendy.” Cherie smiled.
“Hi, Wendy, I’m Cherie. I’m a student here at Claremont College.”
“Nice to meet you, Cherie. What are you studying?”
“I’m actually working on my master’s degree in English Literature.”
“Wow, that’s impressive. I used to be in college, but it was really stressful and, well, my grades were not very good, and I had some behavioral issues and the Court placed me here at the Institute. That was about six months ago.”
“Gosh, I’m sorry to hear that. Has being at the Institute helped you?”
“Actually, it has. They have helped me to calm down and not let my emotions get the best of me. Dr. Jennings is a bit stern, but he does not punish you unless you disobey.” Cherie looked at her watch.
“I’d like to talk more, but I have class in about 20 minutes. Perhaps we can talk tomorrow?”
“I’d like that,” Wendy said, “meet here about the same time?” Cherie nodded and then picked up her book and her backpack and headed off to her seminar on Romantic Poetry. As she sat through the seminar, her mind was not on the lecture. Rather, she was thinking about Wendy. She seemed very nice, and she could not understand why someone like that would be institutionalized. When she left the seminar, she stopped by her advisor’s office to try to find out more about the Female Institute.
“Hi Cherie, how are ya?” Dr. Carla Ward had been Cherie’s thesis advisor since she started her master’s work.
“Doing well, thanks, but had a question. Any idea what goes on at the Female Institute that backs up to the campus?” Carla’s expression changed immediately from carefree to concerned.
“Not exactly, but I would keep my distance if I were you. It’s basically an asylum for mentally ill women. Not violent, mind you, but women with severe emotional problems. It was started by a professor from Claremont College, but the Institute split off about 20 years ago. I don’t know much more about it. Like I said, I would keep my distance.” Cherie nodded and headed for her apartment. The words of Dr. Ward should have discouraged her from going to meet Wendy again, but, instead, she found herself even more intrigued by her strange liaison with Wendy. The next day, the skies darkened, and it rained steadily the entire afternoon, making it impossible for her to meet Wendy as planned. She wasn’t sure why, but she felt disappointed that she could not make the meeting. She wondered if Wendy had come out despite the rain. By the next day, the skies had cleared, and Cherie found herself counting the minutes until she could meet Wendy again. As she had done before, she took her book and sat down in her usual spot. She half read her book, but her concentration was focused entirely on the fence at the spot where Wendy had appeared two days before. Thirty minutes passed, then an hour and no Wendy. As Cherie was getting ready to give up, she heard the familiar “Pssst. Pssst.” It was Wendy. She walked to the fence.
“Hi Wendy, so sorry about yesterday, but it was raining too hard to come out.” Wendy smiled. She looked deeply into Cherie’s eyes.
“Nothing to be sorry about. They kept us in too.” Wendy reached out and touched Cherie’s hand. “It’s so nice to have someone like you to talk to. You cannot imagine how lonely I have been for the last six months.” Cherie nodded. Tears were welling up in Wendy’s eyes. Cherie had never been attracted to another woman before, but she felt like she wanted to hug Wendy and wipe away her tears. The fence would not permit that. Wendy had the most beautiful blue eyes. So deep and mournful.
“I know, but I feel like I let you down. I should have come out despite the rain.”
“There’s no reason to feel guilty sweety. Just relax and look into my eyes. Just let your cares and concerns drift away.” Cherie did not need any encouragement. As she focused on Wendy’s eyes, the rest of the world seemed to fade away. “Deeper. Deeper. More relaxed sweetie. Feeling so very sleepy.” Cherie suddenly felt very tired, and her body seemed heavy. “Let those heavy eyes close sweetie. Just close them and listen to my voice. My voice is the only thing that is important to you. Do you understand?”
“Yes, I understand,” Cherie said softly.
“Good girl. You may sit but keep focused on the sound of my voice. Your mind emptying to make room for my voice. Telling you what to think and what to do. So very relaxed and so very obedient.” As Cherie sat, her head pitched forward, and a trail of drool escaped from her mouth. “Deeper sweetie. Deeper. Your mind is completely empty now except for my words. My words are your thoughts. What I tell you is the absolute truth. Do you understand?”
“Absolute truth….” Cherie drawled.
“Good girl. You love listening to my voice. My voice gives you direction and helps you do what you are supposed to do. You are lost without my voice. You need my control. Submitting to my control makes you feel deep pleasure. Obeying me arouses you.” Cherie could feel her pussy getting wet. She wanted to push her fingers into it so badly. “Just relax and go deeper for me. So very deep. Listening to my voice gives you so much pleasure.” A lazy smile came to Cherie’s face. It felt so good to listen to Wendy. “Sweetie, from now on, you and I are the best of friends. There is nothing I could ask of you that you wouldn’t gladly do for me. Refusing me or disappointing me are not even an option for you. Do you understand?”
“Yes, I understand.”
“Good girl. In a minute or so, I am going to wake you from your trance. You love being hypnotized by me and you want to be hypnotized often. When you awake, you will not remember what I have told you, but it will be locked deeply in your subconscious and ready to access. When I and only I say the word “Poetry”, you will drop back into a deep trance ready to accept and obey my instructions. Do you understand?”
“Yes, I understand.”
“Good girl. I will count up from 1 to 5. When I reach 5, you will be wide awake. 1, feeling yourself waking, 2, stretching and feeling your fingers and toes, 3, ready to wake, 4, almost there, and 5, wide awake.” Cherie’s eyes fluttered open. “I think you dozed off.”
“I’m so sorry. I guess I didn’t sleep well last night.”
“No problem. I hope you enjoy our time together as much as I do,” Wendy said with a knowing glint in her eye.
“Absolutely, you’re like my best friend,” Cherie said embarrassed that she had modified best friend with the unnecessary qualifier “like.” There was no doubt in her mind that Wendy was her best friend. It was just a shame that Wendy was stuck in the Institute. Actually, it was more than a shame, it was an injustice. The more Cherie thought about it, the angrier she got. Unfortunately for Cherie, she was only seeing the side of Wendy, that Wendy wanted her to see. In point of fact, Wendy Perkins was right where she belonged. She had been committed to the Female Institute as an alternative to prison. Despite her youthful appearance, Wendy was in her late 20’s and had worked as a clinical assistant to a local psychiatrist. He had taught her to use hypnosis and Wendy had proved to be a quick study. She showed such natural talent that the psychiatrist gave her more and more responsibility with his patients. Unbeknownst to him, she was using her new-found talent to bilk patients, especially female patients, out of money and even seducing them. When her scheme was discovered, she was immediately fired, and the matter was referred to the local prosecutor. With the help of a clever lawyer, Wendy had avoided prison time, but had agreed to be committed to the Institute for treatment for an indefinite period. Despite the contrition Wendy showed to the judge, she was not going to give up employing her hypnosis skills.
When she arrived at the Female Institute, Wendy began to figure out ways that her hypnosis could make her life easier. The Institute ran on a strict routine. Patients were assigned to individual rooms, where they spent most of their time unless they were eating, receiving treatment, or having recreational time on the grounds. The Institute was patrolled by white-uniformed orderlies, who enforced the rooms and assisted the staff making sure patients received their treatment. Sometimes this meant the use of physical force for patients that were uncooperative. Wendy had managed to hypnotize the orderly assigned to her to allow her to receive special privileges and additional food. She had decidedly less success with the nursing staff and Dr. Jennings. Indeed, Dr. Jennings had told her that she was on the list to receive the implantation of an experimental device in her brain that would regulate her behavior without the need for medications. Wendy had protested, but Dr. Jennings had assured her that it was relatively painless and was within his discretion. At that point, Wendy had made the decision that leaving the Institute was an absolute necessity.
Wendy continued to hypnotize Cherie, each time taking her deeper and deeper under and increasing the pleasure she felt from obedience. When she was satisfied that she had Cherie under control, it was time to begin her plan for leaving the Institute. “Cherie, sweetie, I would if you would do a big favor for me?”
“Of course, Wendy, you are my best friend. That’s what friends are for.” Wendy smiled.
“You are so sweet. I just hate to impose upon you.”
“I am happy to do anything that you need me to do,” Cherie chirped.
“Well, my sister, Mindy, is in the hospital and is having an operation on Monday. We are very close, and I know she would appreciate it if I was there to support her. I have asked permission to leave the Institute, but it was denied, and I am simply distraught over not being there for my sister.” In point of fact, Wendy had no sister, but her skills as a pathological liar were exemplary.
“That’s terrible Wendy. Why the heck would they not let you out for something so important. Do you want me to talk to them?”
“Not really sweetie. I was kind of hoping that you would switch places with me for 48 hours. You would dress as me and I would dress as you and I could go see my sister and be back before anyone notices.” To any rational person, such a plan was crazy, but Cherie was no longer thinking rationally. Any idea that Wendy had seemed perfectly reasonable to her, and she truly wanted to help this kind-hearted woman, who was being treated so unfairly by the Institute.
“Why of course I would do that for you. Going to support your sister is too important and I don’t have anything nearly that important to accomplish. Can you teach me what I need to know while I am a patient?”
“Of course, sweetie. I will also have a clean uniform for you. Let’s meeting here tomorrow morning early, say 8:00am to make the switch.” Wendy reached through the fence and kissed Cherie. Cherie blushed. “I love you baby girl.”
“I love you, Wendy.”
“My recreating time is almost over. I’ll see you in the morning. Please remember to bring me clothes and shoes and some money or a credit card.”
Cherie nodded. She was a bit excited about switching places with Wendy.