"The Great Gisele" Chapter Two (Script, higher tiers only)

A flurry of hands went up. The Great Gisele examined them each quickly but carefully, all the while hiding her excitement, she really, really loved her stage hypnosis gigs outside of her regular nine to five as a trusted hypnotherapist. A perky little blonde, probably the elder sister of one of the students, with leggings and a form-fitting sweater; an older woman wearing overly-sensible glasses; a fit man in his early thirties with a and a nervous-looking co-ed in a linen get up and made their way upwards.

For the fifth volunteer, Gisele turned and flashed a smile at the principal, still standing by the side of the stage. “And how about you, sir?”

“I –“ He seemed flabbergasted at the suggestion. “No, no, I don’t think.”

She walked over to him, cocking her head sweetly. “What’s wrong? Don’t you want to live a little?” Then, angled away from the crowd so they didn’t see, she flashed her dazzling earring at him, it twinkled and spun.

He was so startled that he didn’t stop her when she grabbed his tie, and whispered, “You’re setting a good example for your students by participating. You’re going along with the show to have fun.”

He stared straight ahead for a moment, then it cleared slightly. “…Yes. Of course.”

“Excellent! Could my five volunteers line up on stage for me please?”

They slowly got into line, and she couldn’t quite hide her smile. This was going to be fun.

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Gisele had thought of Beth as a “perky little blonde”, and Beth probably would have objected at the categorization. Beth Waterson thought of herself as incredibly put-together, career-focused, a PhD hopeful (never mind that she hadn’t finished her undergrad yet) and altogether not going to get taken in by a silly hypnosis show.  The truth was – and she wasn’t about to admit this part to anybody – Gisele was making her curious.

Of course, Beth also hadn’t planned on being Gisele’s first subject. So as the taller woman got closer, she found herself sweating into her knit jumper and wondering what on earth she’d been thinking.

“Hello sweetheart! What’s your name?”

“Uh – Beth.”

“Beth! What a nice name. Why don’t you tell us a little about yourself?” Gisele leant over Beth, a smug smile on her face.

“I… uh… I’m twenty-one, and I’m a political science major at the local university. With a minor in neurochemistry.”

“Neurochemistry. How interesting.” Gisele gave a look to the crowd that caused a little wave of snickers, and Beth tried to stop the flush of embarrassment. Then Gisele reached over, brushing her gloved hand over Beth’s shoulders. “Tell me, Beth, what do you think of hypnosis-“ Gisele snapped her fingers. “Oh, I’m so sorry, continue.”

Gisele leant in close, listening intently, snapping her fingers, repeatedly catching Beth mid-sentence. Beth couldn’t even remember what she’d said. SNAP!

“Sorry about that,. What was I saying?”

“Hypnosis dear.  SNAP! What do you think of hypnosis?”

“Oh. Um, honestly?”

“Yes, dear.”

Beth considered it. SNAP! Was it worth being honest? SNAP She slipped her shoes off. “I’m not sure it’s real. I mean, it’s just little tricks, right? Nobody’s really doing anything they don’t want to do. And it’s just as easy to bribe people from the audience and put on a good show. SNAP! There’s not a lot of good evidence for hypnosis as something you can do as a big, gaudy thing.” Beth undid the top button of her jeans SNAP!, rolling them down her legs and stepping out of them, kicking them aside with her shoes. “Don’t – don’t get me wrong, I’m not calling you a fraud, exactly, but-“ SNAP!

“Hm. I don’t know, it kind of sounds like that.” SNAP! Gisele was smiling, and Beth wasn’t entirely sure why. “Just say it outright, dear. I won’t be mad.” SNAP!

“I suppose I am calling you a fraud,” Beth admitted. “Stage magic is all fraud. It’s tricking people for money, and most people know that, but I still think it’s a little scummy.” She pulled her sweater over her head, the tank-top underneath peeling off with it. It felt good to actually take it off-

-her bra keeping her modest, she stopped in horror. She could still feel the compulsion, telling her arms and legs to move, but she hadn’t even… recognized it.

A loud wave of laughter spread across the auditorium. She glanced down at the front row in hysterics.

Gisele came up behind her, grabbing her shoulders. “Oh, yes, I’m a terrible fraud,” she teased. “Always the non-believers who go so deep. Permit me to demonstrate another hypnotic command.” Beth murmured something about using the other volunteers instead, but The Great Gisele was already swaying her arms up and down, wiggling her fingers in front of Beth’s eyes. “Silence! You are in my power!” Gisele stated as a matter of fact. Beth stared blankly ahead, fascinated.  Her mind was asleep.

The Great Gisele pushed her hair aside and gave Beth another command, this one clear enough for some of the other volunteers to hear. “You’re a dog now, with a big fluffy tail and a dumb mutt brain. Go for a walk around the stage.” SNAP!

But I’m smart, Beth thought helplessly in the last few moments before the order settled in. It didn’t even occur to her to wonder how Gisele had hypnotized her so fast – she didn’t have time. Instead, she got down on her hands and knees, wagging her 'tail', one hundred and ten percent convinced she was a dog and always had been. Dogs didn’t have to think. Dogs certainly didn’t know what neuroscience was. And when the crowd laughed at her walking off the stage at The Great Gisele’s command, she just let her tongue wag out and enjoyed the attention. Why not? It meant they liked her.

THE END