⌚ New Experiences

38. The Greatest Lesson

"You're still okay with this?" Spanky asked again, pawpads gently brushing against her wing. "I think that was roughly what we agreed on, enough to make it fun."

"Yeah, I'm good. Didn't have the chance to object really. She sniped me before I saw it coming."

"That's my pet," Lulu grinned. "Mighty hunter, always ready to pounce."

This time Paper just pouted. She wanted to protest, but not in front of other people. Talking back to her Mistress was bound to get her in trouble, and she didn't want to distract attention away from the little ones and their game.

"I don't think she likes being called a hunter," Spanky said. "What's with that? New nickname?"

"She's been trying to hypnotise me," Paper explained. "Hasn't got it yet. Once she figures it out she'll be able to control me as easily as you two. As if she can't already."

"It's fun being helpless as part of a game," Dawn shrugged. "I'm happy to let her use that yoyo on me when it's part of the game, and I know she'lll never try it without prior agreement.""

"Like you could stop me."

"You wouldn't. You can use it in the game, and that's all. Or if Spanky asks me to. We might be playing the same games sometimes, but Spanky is the only one who has permission to use that on me without me asking for it. Anyway, Paper... you'd be okay with a similar situation, right? If she manages to master the Mighty Hunter?"

"I'll give it a try for her. But I don't like the words."

"Why is it Mighty Hunter?" Spanky was still confused.

"It's a type of hypnosis for cats," Lulu answered with a smile, happy to share her wisdom even if she was still fuzzy on the details. "It taps into the ancient hunting instincts, because they're still there beneath the surface even if you've been suppressing them since you were a kitten. Paper is the mighty hunter, and I'm sure I can make her feel it." She gestured towards the edges of Paper's face; clicked her fingers, and then brought her hands in closer. "Sleep!"

"Sorry Mistress."

"See, the thing is you need to get the focus first," Dawn explained. "I came across this one through college. Difference between species has always been a big thing for me. The Mighty Hunter induction works for most predator races, but for Homo panthera it's almost irresistible, because of the stronger instinct to pounce on sudden movement. It's not easy to explain over email, but you need to get your hands right at the edge of her vision, so it comes into sight and might seem to be a small creature darting away just as you click your fingers and give the command Prey! and because the same impulse is coming from two different centres of the brain, instinctive and verbal, she couldn't help moving a couple of inches. That's enough to reach out, and grip her arm like you're going to shake hands, and gently pull. It's not the movement you expect in that context so it gives a moment's confusion. So at the same time wiggling fingers in front of her eyes from the other hand, or feathers or tail if that's easier, she stares automatically because that pounce instinct is still near the forefront of her mind. Eyes follow the feathers, she can't look away, and even if she realises what's happening she can't stop staring, trying to follow the erratic movements before I say Sleep!"

Dawn reached up quickly, twitching her wings out of the way again, and caught Paper before she could lose her balance. "See, she was entirely focused on my wingtips, because I already activated the pounce instinct, and when I took them away she was confused, mind completely blank, and used that time to give a clear, unequivocal order. Which, if this was a real session, I'd now be using to give more instructions, having already established a habit of doing what I say. It's all about interrupting the pattern, but the pounce instinct means you can guarantee what the pattern in her head is. And now she's starting to wake up, because I'm talking normally and that encourages her regular patterns back. Come on, Paper. Stand up, wake up, feel your normal thoughts returning. Just a quick drop to demonstrate the technique, nothing to worry about."