The Erotic Mind-Control Story Archive

It all comes back to politics in the end.

That was something my father often said, and true to his word, here I was now, the mayor of a sleepy little collection of well-off suburbs. On the world’s stage, it wasn’t much,but it was something. Maybe I could finally drag this place into the 21st Century, and gain a little upward momentum while I was about it. Next, state politics, then federal? I could dream.

Unfortunately, the smaller the government, the louder the voices of the people, suburban mums for example, could be heard.

Robin, my opponent today, was the chair for the Noodle Market Committee, a strictly volunteer organisation that booked the park outside the council chambers to host noodle markets, about three times a year. The council had given up hosting them long ago, because they just didn’t attract the crowds that they used to. The youths these days were more interested in video games and social media, not picnics and world music. The frequent attendees were getting older, and their attendance was getting less frequent. Robin’s only task, as far as I was concerned, was to keep the whole thing on life .

She didn’t see it that way, and now she was up in arms because the council was preparing to sell the land to a developer. We were going to turn the space into a shopping centre, stimulating the local economy and hopefully going some way to shedding the place’s reputation as a commuter town. Everybody would win… except the ones who were stuck in the past.

“Mr. Mayor,” Robin began formally, as soon as we had sat down, “thank you for taking the time to read my objection to the proposed development of the shopping centre.”

“I’m sure you understand, Mrs. Stone—”

“Donovan, please,” she said quickly.

Right, I had forgotten she was divorced. “Apologies, Ms. Donovan. But the sale will go ahead as planned. I’m sure it doesn’t seem this way to you, but it will be a huge benefit to the community.”

“And what about the noodle markets?”

“You know my opinion,” I said. “You’re welcome to book any of the other council greenspaces, try holding it in another venue.”

Robin didn’t buy it, and why would she? We both knew that moving to another, less central location, that could take far less advantage of nearby council infrastructure, would be a death knell for the markets in any case.

“They’re a cornerstone of the community!” she protested.

“A community which, you have to it, is dwindling,” I steepled my fingers over my desk. “Your concerted efforts to appeal to younger demographics haven’t panned out.”

“So promote them properly,” she snapped. “It should be the role of local government to foster its community.”

“I am fostering community, Ms. Donovan. The shopping centre will be a hub for local entertainment, social gathering, and commerce.”

“That costs everyone more to experience,” she muttered.

“I appreciate your perspective as always, but I promise the benefits are going to far outweigh the drawbacks,” I said with as much sympathy as I could manage. “I hope you’ll come to appreciate the new development in time. This will be the future of our community.”

It was a canned line, but Robin quieted. She spent a long moment considering me.

“Then I’d like to extend you an invitation, Mr. Mayor,” she said eventually, “to see the markets off before the space becomes unusable.”

Ah, yes. I should have expected this ploy.

“I’m a busy man, Ms. Donovan.”

“It’s on this Friday,” she insisted. “If you really are committed to the wellbeing of this community, this would be a great opportunity to show it.”

It wasn’t a bad argument. If everyone there was as set in their ways as Robin clearly was, then I might as well take the opportunity to convince them of my vision for the future. Maybe they’d be easier to sway, or at least placated enough not to kick up a fuss about it before the next council elections.

“Alright,” I gave her my best winning smile, “strictly as an informal visit, I’ll be there to see it off.”

“Thank you, Mr. Mayor,” Robin inclined her head in gratitude.

The Noodle Market Committee had clearly read the writing on the wall, and had promoted this one as the last one ever, pulling out all the stops in the process—perhaps burning through the last of their budget reserves before dissolving the committee. And I could it, there was a quaint charm to it. There was music, there were impromptu ball games, and there was a trove of multicultural foods for sale—including noodles, of course—across a wide array of stalls that dotted the park. It was too greasy for my palate, but it gave the place a nice atmosphere.

There were also more adults under 40 here than I’d imagined—not just the children of vendors helping their parents to man the stalls, but actual market-goers, singing, dancing, and by all s having a great time. Some of them looked very out of place; indeed, one lady with chestnut brown hair, a sleek red dress, and full red lips looked like she could have stepped into this market from straight out of a noir detective story—a classic femme fatale, looking somewhat incongruous waiting in line for noodles. I suspected a certain someone had deliberately inflated the demographic numbers. I couldn’t say how she’d pulled it off, but it was a clever move.

Little does she know the land sale is going through no matter what.

But I wasn’t going to up the opportunity to enjoy myself. I wandered along the paths, hands in my pockets, soaking in the atmosphere for a while.

Time wore on, and I was about to start thinking of when I should leave, when a young woman in the communal dancing area caught my eye, or perhaps I caught hers. She was thin and dark-skinned, her face framed with frizzy black hair and large, rounded glasses. She seemed to flow with the music, no worries about keeping the beat or singing the words. She simply felt.

She smirked at me as she slowed to a stop, and I became uncomfortably aware that my choice of dress this evening was not suited to dancing. The thought hadn’t even crossed my mind, so I’d chosen a pair of formal black tros with a purple pinstripe shirt and polished black shoes, something I might wear to work. I was sticking out like a sore thumb.

“It’s a nice evening,” she said.

“Uh, yeah,” I shook myself, “yeah it is.” She was younger than me by a considerable way, and gawking at her would be a bad look.

“Enjoying yourself?”

“I’m learning to like it,” I itted, partly as a way of excusing my dress sense. “Are you… on your own right now?”

She smiled prettily, gleaming white teeth that paired intriguingly with the spark that ignited in her eyes.

“I’m here with a friend,” the woman replied, “she’s just getting us some—”

“Kadi, there you are!” a new voice exclaimed over the low hum of the crowds, and from behind me a woman appeared with pale, freckled skin, shoulder-length blonde hair and a wide, smiling face. And arms full of food and drinks.

“Wow!” the dancing woman—Kadi, I presumed—laughed gently, allowing her friend to spill approximately half the contents of her arms into Kadi’s own. “You got us a lot!”

“Duh, fresh lemonade!” her friend replied. “Where else do you get that these days??”

Kadi took a sip, and judged the point to be fair. She gestured to me with the cup. “I was just talking to, ah—”

“Tom,” I supplied quickly, thinking I probably shouldn’t lead with the fact that I was the mayor.

“Mya!” the blonde exclaimed, delicately balancing everything in one hand so she could use her other to shake mine.

“Mya, lovely to meet you,” I said, “and… Kadi, was it?”

“Kadiatou,” she said, “Kadi to my friends.”

“Does that include me?” I ventured. She was really quite attractive, and after all, these markets were supposed to be for socialising, weren’t they?

“Maybe,” she smiled, a hint of playfulness behind those warm, brown eyes.

We retreated from the dancing area to a relatively quiet spot on the grass, where Kadi and Mya could eat their dinner, which I understood to be Turkish gozleme. Mya even offered me a bite of hers, and though it was as oily as I’d suspected, I found myself wanting more, if only so that I could continue to share a moment with these ladies. Maybe there was a slight language barrier separating me from their generation’s particular idioms, and the problems of twenty-somethings seemed a little far removed from my experience, but in a way it was refreshing, too.

I was… actually having fun. The realisation shocked me. It felt strange, like a muscle I’d never exercised.

“It’s too bad it has to end soon,” Kadi said wistfully, and I shook myself out of my thoughts.

“Sorry?”

“These markets,” she gestured around us, “they say this is the last one. Some kind of development taking over the space.”

I shrugged awkwardly, “I wasn’t sure when to bring this up, but assuming you’re both locals, I’m actually your mayor.”

Mya’s eyes widened. “Ooooh! Wow! Sorry we didn’t recognise you, Mr. Mayor!”

“Please,” I held up a hand, smiling wearily, “just Tom for tonight.”

“So you would know all about it, then,” Kadi pressed on. “The development.”

“Yes, I know it’s not the most popular choice around here,” I itted. “But I promise, we’re replacing it with something much better.”

“Oh, that’s something at least,” Mya relaxed her shoulders. “I have a lot of good memories of this place.”

“Well,” I offered, “now you’ll be able to make some new ones.”

She smiled widely, and I realised too late my words might have carried other connotations. Before I could correct myself, she snuggled into my arm, trapping it very comfortably between us. On my other side, Kadi leaned her head on my shoulder.

“Come on,” Mya said suddenly, and they both stood up, using their leverage on my arms to pull me to my feet, “let’s walk around.”

They had me off-balance, and I couldn’t think of any reason not to. As the hum of activity slowly started to wind down, the two ladies took me around the edge of the park, reminiscing.

“I’m sure there used to be a hole in this hill,” Kadi mused, gesturing to a small hillock, “like a section of pipe that went all the way through it. You could slide down it.”

“There was!” I ed. “The council had to fill it in due to safety complaints from parents.”

“I’m sure that happens a lot,” she said, but her words couldn’t disguise the subtle resentment in her voice.

“What about you?” I inclined my head towards Mya. “What’s your favourite memory?”

Mya grinned, and I almost thought, beneath the cover of darkness, she was blushing. “My favourite memories are… a little different than that.”

I blinked, not sure what to do with that information, but Kadi’s eyes lit up with that mischievous warmth I was beginning to associate with her.

“OoooOOooh!” she teased. “Tell us more!”

“I, well…” Mya squirmed against my arm, “once everything had quieted down I’d, you know, sneak off with a guy, behind the trees where no-one could see, and we’d make out a little!”

My eyes widened, and I couldn’t help briefly picturing it. Maybe it had even been behind those trees, right where my gaze was lingering now. Kadi burst out laughing, and Mya tried frantically to reclaim her dignity.

“It was nothing bad!” she insisted. “Well okay, sometimes, but not where anyone could see! ...Sorry, Mr. Mayor.”

“Oh, I’m off the clock,” I shrugged, not wanting to deal with that right now.

“Okaaaay,” Mya relented, “just once or twice, we also… went down on each other.”

Kadi positively wheezed with laughter, clutching onto my arm for . I had to fight to keep a sudden spike of arousal from showing in my pants. I’d never been party to someone else’s intimate secrets before, at least not like this, and it was a heady sensation.

“You bad girl!” Kadi whistled.

“It was fun, okay?” Mya protested. “I think my favourite was when—”

Her eyes landed on me.

“—uhh actually, what’s the statute of limitations on, say… tresing?”

Only the fact that my arms were wrapped around two lovely ladies prevented me from pinching the bridge of my nose, but I couldn’t keep the smile off my face.

Kadi squinted at her. “Under a year. Why?”

“Soooo,” Mya wrung her hands a little, “the council building has like, a service gate around the back that’s honestly really easy to get past, sometimes it’s not even locked, and there’s an access ladder you can use to get to the roof if you climb carefully…”

Oh, for god’s sake. I sighed dramatically, and the women laughed again.

“With a guy?” I completed, and Mya nodded sheepishly.

“Wow,” Kadi beamed. “You little daredevil!”

“It was romantic!” Mya protested. “We kissed under the stars, and just stayed there for hours with nobody to interrupt us!” She turned to me with wide, innocent eyes. “Please don’t tell anyone.”

“I won’t,” I promised, though it wouldn’t do much good now anyway.

“Waaait a minute…” Kadi said suddenly, “is that what you were planning for me?”

That stopped Mya in her tracks, and even in the shadows I could see her blush.

Oh. Well, this was unexpected. I had been so taken by their charms that the possibility of one or both of them being, to be blunt, gay for each other, had never occurred to me.

“I, um… uh…” Mya stammered, but Kadi cut her off.

“You were! You have been dancing close to me all night, holding my hands, flattering me. Even bought me dinner!”

“Okay, yeah, maybe a little bit,” Mya itted. “I didn’t know if you were into women, and I wanted to kind of, test the waters you know?”

“Aw, I’m so sorry, honey,” Kadi crooned, “I should have noticed, but I got talking to this handsome man instead. Forgive me.” Her fingers trailed down my chest.

“Well true, fair enough, he is very handsome,” Mya drawled, imitating Kadi’s movements on my other side, “so maybe things worked out for the best.”

Hang on a minute, when did this conversation become about me? And were they saying what I thought they were saying?

“If you two ladies need some time to yourselves—” I began awkwardly.

“I’m enjoying the company I have right now,” Kadi murmured, her eyes flicking back and forth between me and Mya. “All of it.”

“Maybe… the more, the merrier?” Mya said tentatively, and there was little doubt about what she was suggesting. I stood there for a second, stunned by what my night had turned into, as these two gorgeous ladies looked at me expectantly.

“I certainly would love to,” I croaked, “but there’s still a number of people about. I’m not sure I’d want to be recognised in such a position.”

“We’ll just have to find somewhere more private, then,” Mya replied.

I puffed out my cheeks in nervous anticipation, “I’m not sure I have it in me to climb onto the council roof, if that’s what you’re suggesting.”

“You are the mayor, aren’t you?” Kadi pointed out. “You don’t need to get through a badly locked gate to find a quiet spot in the council.”

“Yeah!” Mya exclaimed, “it’s not tresing if you’re letting us in, right?”

Maybe there was a reason that wouldn’t hold up in court, but it just wasn’t coming to me. The council chambers wouldn’t even have janitors around at this hour. No chance of us being interrupted.

“Alright. This way!” I ushered them, and together we all but scampered across the shadowed grass towards the council.

I fumbled my key into the lock of the doors, and by way of thanks, Kadi kissed me softly on the cheek. I felt giddy with excitement, not just at the prospect of breaking into my own chambers, but knowing there would be plenty more of that to come. The quiet, stale air of the foyer was like a blanket, covering our daring caper from the outside world.

“We need to make sure we don’t leave any evidence that we were here,” I cautioned.

“We won’t,” Mya whispered, “we promise!”

They sat down on one of the long sofas we had for people to wait on, leaving a space between them that they gestured to meaningfully. I’d barely sat down on it when they swung their legs over me, sandwiching me between them very snugly.

“So… what was it you said you did with someone after sneaking off?” I asked Mya, hoping it sounded more like an invitation and less like I was pressuring her.

Fortunately, she seemed to be on the same wavelength, and she gently tilted my face towards hers.

“This,” she murmured, kissing me softly. Her lips were warm and adventurous, roaming over mine like a sensual massage until I melted into bliss. On my other side, I felt Kadi shift closer.

“Oh, I see,” her voice filtered through to my ears, “like this?”

I felt thin but dextrous fingers curl around my chin as they guided my head away, though I was so submerged in bliss I couldn’t find my voice to object. I’d hardly had a second to catch my breath when Kadi picked up right where Mya left off, just as sensuous and spine-tingling as her friend, but subtly different in a way I wanted to spend all night discovering.

“Mmm, no,” came Mya’s teasing lilt, and now it was her fingers caressing my chin, “it’s more like this…”

For a good few minutes they continued trading me back and forth between them, my lips constantly enveloped by theirs, my head spinning with hedonistic abandon. I didn’t have the brainpower for words, but some instinct told me we’d be losing clothes soon.

“I have an idea,” Mya whispered in my ear as my lips were once again occupied by Kadi’s.

“Mmmrgh?” I managed to get out.

“We go to your office instead,” Mya suggested, before turning my face towards her, her lips smushing wonderfully against mine.

“That’s a good idea,” cooed Kadi, “then nobody will notice if anything’s out of place except you.” Then she turned my head back to hers again.

As Kadi’s tongue was exploring my mouth, Mya leaned into my ear and breathed, “It’s such a good idea, we should do it right now.”

Their words blurred into a seductive chorus as they kissed me, one after the other after the other. What were we talking about? Oh yes, my office. What a good idea.

I finally pulled back to catch my breath, and as they guided me to my feet, I allowed myself to be steered from the foyer, up the stairs. We arrived in front of a familiar door, and I punched in the code without a second thought.

I turned back to my guests, and caught sight of Kadi slipping something into her pocket.

“I’m turning off my phone,” she explained, stepping forward to kiss me again, “we wouldn’t want to be interrupted by anything, would we?”

I nodded against her lips. That made sense. Of course she would be doing that.

They manoeuvred me into my office chair, and covered my face with kisses, murmuring sweet nothings into my ears.

“Just relax, let us take care of everything,” I heard one of them whisper—Mya, I thought—as they each took my hands and guided them, sneaking under their clothes towards their breasts. I was in heaven, soft skin and softer words making me feel so relaxed, so open…

I felt my hand being pulled down as Mya lowered herself to the floor in front of me. I blinked, almost uncomprehending, as her fingers found my belt buckle, pulling down my tros and my underwear. They really hadn’t suited the occasion in any possible way.

She sat there for a second, iring my dick, before leaning forward to cup my balls in her hands. Her eyes raised to meet mine.

“I guess this makes it the third time,” she said slyly, flicking her tongue sensually over the head before taking me into her mouth.

“I, um, wow—” I managed, but any other thoughts I had were silenced by Kadi’s lips on mine, and her surprisingly firm hand on my chin.

“Shhh, what did we say?” she commanded. “Relax.”

So I did, melting into her arms as she kissed me, twirling her tongue inside my mouth. Down below, Mya was sucking me slowly, torturously, and the pleasure was making my head buzz… swim… ache… I couldn’t think…

“You cannot think,” Kadi murmured, “your thoughts are drifting, drifting away…”

Dimly, I wondered why, but then her lips met mine just as Mya swirled her tongue around the aching head of my dick again, and my mind went blank.

“Can we… swap?” I heard Kadi whisper. “I’m a bit… out of words.”

I didn’t fully understand the reasoning there, but I certainly wasn’t going to complain. Kadi took Mya’s place between my legs, and Mya straddled the arm of my chair, pressing gentle but insistent smooches to my lips.

“This feels so good, doesn’t it?” she sighed dreamily.

“Yeah,” I replied, feeling oddly hazy, and I was rewarded for my answer with another kiss.

“You were so hard in my mouth,” she cooed, her tongue teasing my earlobe, “I bet you’re just as hard in Kadi’s, right?”

I was. Kadi was very very good, even if she was going just a fraction too slow-

“Up, and down, and up, and down,” Mya sang, her lips finding mine with each repetition, “you could cum from this, couldn’t you?”

I suddenly realised that I very much could. Kadi’s mouth was torturous ecstasy, and when she suddenly took me all the way in, I was left reeling, gasping as she propelled me towards the edge-

“Shhhhh, mmmmwah,” Mya cut in, kissing me to stifle my moans, “you don’t want to cum too early, do you? So you have to relax instead. Just relax everything. Your arms—”

kiss

“—your legs—”

kiss

“—your chest—”

kiss

“—and your mind. Let everything go now. Let yourself drift away from it—”

kiss

“—like you’re not even here anymore, you’re just listening to us.”

kiss

“Doing exactly as we say.”

This was more intense than any sex I could ever , but somehow I found it easy to just… detach, and then I was floating away, just as she’d suggested… drifting off to-

“Sleep,” Mya snapped her fingers.

Of course, sleep. That made perfect sense…

I was vaguely aware of my body sagging into my chair as Mya’s lips captured mine again.

“Alright Kadi, you’re up,” Mya said, suddenly all business.

Kadi got to her feet, letting my dick fall out of her mouth limply. I should have been embarrassed, but I wasn’t. I was sleeping for them so that … I would last longer. Yeah, of course. That was what Mya had said.

“My grandparents sent me here to study law,” Kadi grumbled, “They would have a fit if they knew I was using my degree like this.”

“What? It worked, didn’t it?” Mya grinned.

“Oh no, it was fun,” Kadi itted, “but I hope it won’t be like this my whole career.”

“Well, you’re probably never going to stop men from letting their brains fall out around you, so you might as well use it to your advantage, s’all I’m saying. Hell, we didn’t even need to lez it up for this one!”

“That’s a good point,” Kadi conceded, “but I still need some information from him.”

“Right, right,” Mya shook herself, leaning back into me. “Tommm, can I ask you a favour? Since we’re such good friends?”

“Yes, of course.”

I was surprised by how clear my voice was even as I felt half-asleep.

“Well, Kadi and I are fascinated by what it’s like to actually be the mayor of somewhere, so why don’t you show us?”

“Umm, sure, what would you like to know?”

“Picture yourself logging into your computer, ready to start the day, so many mayoral duties to choose from.”

I was picturing it.

“Picture it a little more, just pretend we’re not even here, and lean forward to type in your . You can’t be mayor if you aren’t logged in properly.”

She was right, obviously. There were so many systems to to. I needed to to access all the… sensitive files… wait-

Mya cut off my train of thought, kissing me softly and easing herself into my lap as I realised she was no longer wearing, well, anything. She ground her soft, slick pussy against my dick.

“And of course,” she purred, “we shouldn’t let your important mayoral duties distract us from all the other things we want to be doing right now.”

She was gazing at me hungrily, as ready as any woman I’d ever been with, but she held back, teasing the head of my dick with her opening.

“Go on,” she coaxed, kissing me again, letting me slip just a fraction inside of her, “just let yourself move on automatic, knowing that it takes no effort at all to please us so much…”

My hands lurched clumsily forwards. My fingers knew the keys to press even if my mind couldn’t focus.

“Gooood boy,” Mya breathed, and sank down on me in an instant. Mind-numbing pleasure boiled up inside me, and I found myself lolling back onto the chair, the laptop instantly forgotten. And when Mya kissed me, our tongues meeting frantically as she rode me faster and faster, I forgot where I was altogether.

“Anything else, Kadi?” Mya murmured.

“No, that was enough. Everything else already re his or logs in automatically. Just give me some time alone with it and I’ll get back to you.”

I heard the laptop shift off the desk as Kadi walked away somewhere, but my focus was taken up by the ride of my life that Mya was giving me. Her eyes glinted knowingly as I beheld her on top of me.

“Now just relax, Mayor Tom.” she smirked, “I have some things I want to tell you, and even if you’re not listening properly, you’re going to pay attention to them, okay?”

“Yeah, yes, anything for you.”

“Good,” she replied, “now close your eyes…”

I closed my eyes, and let her ride me into oblivion, her pussy wrapped around me as her whispered words in my ear wrapped themselves around my brain.

Mya and I screwed each other steadily for what felt like hours. Kadi worked away patiently, doing what I couldn’t quite tell, my entire focus was on Mya. Occasionally I heard the office printer whirr to life, or a pen scratching across paper. But any thought I had that this was wrong somehow was soothed when Mya offered me her soft, round breasts, to suck on her nipples.

All the while she whispered to me, and I could feel myself changing with her. Shackles that I’d never seen in myself unclasping. New perspectives I would never even have considered. A joyful, devoted obedience to my Mistresses.

If one of those things was not quite like the others, then the feeling of her riding me, the perfect tease to drive me crazy with pleasure without letting me finish, was soothing any worries I might have.

Eventually Mistress Kadi shouted a triumphant, “Got it!” which Mistress Mya took as her cue to ride me faster, the pleasure coming too thick and fast to hold back-

“That’s it,” she murmured, “cum inside me, oh god, I’ve been at this soooo long, don’t you dare finish anywhere else, uhhhhh—”

She moaned as her orgasm, built up slowly and patiently over god knows how long, finally crashed over her, causing her to bury her face in my shoulder, babbling softly.

“Cum,” she said, “just cum, pleeeease, yes, ohhh yes, that’s it, cum now—”

I couldn’t have held back any longer if I’d been offered a billion dollars. I closed my eyes and let go for Mistress Mya one last time as weeks, or even years, of pent-up sexual frustration burst out in glorious waves of pleasure. I sank back into my chair as Mistress Mya lifted herself off me and slumped against my desk, breathing hard, both of us completely spent.

I felt exhausted, deflated, and for the first time in a long while, satisfied. But Mistress Kadi was closing the laptop and stalking over to me with a hungry look in her eye.

“You took his dick out of action?”

“Yeah, soz,” Mya shrugged, “thought that was what you wanted.”

“Well, maybe I decided I want a turn,” Kadi said, “since I did all of the work. I think I deserve a reward.”

“I did some work!” Mya objected playfully. “I did most of the actual hypnotising!”

“When you need a $200,000 degree in Sexology to do what you did, let me know,” Kadi shot back.

“Okay, fair.”

“Alright Mayor Tom,” Kadi said, patiently, “since your dick is out of action, maybe you’re good with your tongue?”

“For you, Mistress Kadi, I’d do anything.”

“Ohh, I like that,” Kadi replied. “You don’t have to call us Mistress though, just think of us like that, understand?”

“Yes, Kadi, I understand.”

“You’re so tired and weak after all that sex,” Kadi smirked, “maybe you’ll feel better kneeling on the ground?”

Now that she mentioned it, the chair was a little uncomfortable, not being designed to fall asleep in. Maybe I would feel better if I just sat here on my knees for a while.

“I think I want a turn in the mayor’s chair,” I heard, as supple brown legs wrapped themselves around my chest. “Tom, face towards me.”

I shuffled around to find Kadi sitting in my chair. Her pussy was right at my eye level.

“Lick, Mr. Mayor,” she said, her voice carrying a heavy hint of irony.

I obeyed, and I didn’t stop pleasing her until she commanded me to, many orgasms later.

When I woke up, I felt like a completely new man. Less stubborn. More sympathetic. More zest for life. All things that had been drummed out of me by trying to make it in even the lowest echelons of politics.

More immediately, I was surprised to discover that we were no longer alone in my office. I was back in my chair, Kadi and Mya smirking down at me with knowing looks on their faces. Behind them, there were two more women, who had apparently snuck in while I was… unconscious? Hypnotised? I didn’t know what to call it.

One of the new arrivals was Robin Donovan. I realised that Kadi must have texted her as soon as she gained access to my office. The other I hardly recognised at all. Hadn’t I seen her somewhere earlier in the night, waiting in line for the noodles? What was her involvement in all of this?

Strangely, though I could understand exactly what Ms. Donovan was doing here, under these circumstances, I wasn’t worried at all. My Mistresses had commanded me not to be, and I trusted them. I could only shake my head and mentally congratulate them on how thoroughly I’d been played.

“Well, well, well,” Kadi proclaimed, “someone’s been very naughty about their new project, haven’t they?”

“I, um…” Honesty is the best policy with my Mistresses. “... yes.”

“So what the fuck is it?” Mya asked.

“Our Mayor Tom has been taking money from the conglomerate that will own the shopping centre,” Kadi explained, looking to me for confirmation. I nodded sheepishly. “And, strictly off the record of course, but before the next local elections, only his party gets to buy advertising space from them after it’s built. Put his face where more people can see it.”

That was all true, and for the first time, I let myself feel guilty about that. A horribly unpleasant churning in my stomach that I’d learned to suppress long ago.

“And they really wanted you to look the other way, Mayor Tom,” Kadi finished up, laying down one of the blueprints for the project in front of me, “because they were swindling you. The official proposal obscures how much the developer is actually going to own, because it’s a lot more than it looks, and a lot of the construction will come at taxpayer expense. They’re going to force it that way.”

I stared down at the blueprint, checking where she’d circled and annotated, growing more and more aghast with myself every second. The money I’d taken from bribes and selling the land paled in comparison to the amount it would cost the council—the people—to this project year-on-year. How could I have been so blind?

“But that’s okay, Tom,” Mya said quickly, “because you don’t want to sell the land anymore, do you?”

I relaxed again, realising she was right. I found the folder for this development project, and symbolically threw it in the bin. Emails would have to be written, meetings would need to be had, and so on, but without my I knew it was dead in the water.

“Maybeee,” Mya said, as though she’d just thought of it, “you can use all the money the council would have spent on the shopping centre to invest in the community!”

“Yeah, yeah absolutely!” I said, and I meant it.

Because I saw it now. Kadi and Mya had opened my eyes. A steady creep of 30 or 40 years of social policy that was driving the community apart. Much of it was enforced at the federal level, but some of it was undeniably in my wheelhouse too. If younger generations were spending all their time indoors on social media, it was because the outside world was becoming more hostile, giving them higher and higher bars of entry every year.

And I almost gave them a shopping centre about it. An unfeeling politician’s answer to a problem I hadn’t understood.

It was about nostalgia, I thought. How could I let future generations grow up in a world without memories of fun, and joy, and community? And how many people in my position have that as their legacy right now without even knowing it?

“Can the noodle markets count on your in the future, then?” Robin called from across the room. Oh, yes. She was still here, along with the mystery guest who was hanging back, watching attentively but clearly not wanting to get involved.

“Erm, hello Ms. Donovan,” I tried to crack a smile, “I didn’t hear you come in. I’d love to affirm my commitment to the noodle markets—in fact, I’m of a mind to let the council start organising them again in the future. With your input, of course.”

I got the sense that I was reciting a script given to me for Robin’s benefit. She nodded at my invitation, but oddly enough, didn’t look too happy.

“I… I do hope you won’t tell anyone about my little indiscretion tonight,” I continued.

“Oh, no no,” she said quickly, “not at all. But I accept your offer.”

The words came out clear enough, but rotely, like her mind was on something else entirely.

“Satisfied?” Kadi smirked at her.

“Yes, yes, it worked,” she waved a hand distractedly. “Give him the whole spiel.”

In perfect sync with one another, Kadi and Mya slipped into my lap again, cupping my face in their hands together.

“Mr. Mayor,” Kadi said slyly, “we have a few other proposals for you we think you will like.”

“Yeah,” Mya purred, “just relax and let us persuade you, with… cunning arguments.”

Kadi leaned in and kissed me, and while I was distracted, Mya snapped her fingers very close to my ear.

“Trance,” she whispered.

My head lolled to the side, and my mind went blank.

My Mistresses started taking turns kissing all over my face and neck while the other whispered wonderful new policy ideas into my ears. I didn’t pay attention, because my brain didn’t need to . My ears just needed to listen and accept.

With nothing else to focus on, my eyes drifted to the two other women in the room: Robin, and the mystery lady whose involvement I still couldn’t work out.

“Well Stephanie,” Robin said, “I suppose this validates your theory then?”

“It’s always been on my radar,” the mystery woman, Stephanie, said. “Hypnosis for political gain. But to actually see it in action, and so effectively… I think I just came up with a joke: how many of parliament can I fit in my pocket? It depends how nicely they ask me.”

“Are you quite happy?” Robin deadpanned, still sounding absolutely cheerless for some reason.

“Oh yes, very much so,” Stephanie replied. “This is huge. I think I’ll be able to squeeze at least three episodes of podcast from it. Purely out of necessity, of course.”

Then she tilted her head towards Robin, apparently picking up on the edge in her voice.

“Are you not happy?”

“What is this, Stephanie?” Robin growled. “Some kind of threat? ‘I have Caleb under my spell, look what I can do to him if you cross me?’”

“Oh, good lord, no!” Stephanie exclaimed. “This is a peace offering. An olive branch. I wanted to show you the ways that hypnosis could benefit you.”

Now everything made sense. Stephanie was a professional hypnotist of some kind, and she seemed to owe Robin a big favour, so my new ideas about the community I served were the result of her repaying it. Presumably she was the one who recruited Kadi and Mya, so someone had in fact bulked up the demographic numbers.

It was a bit late to feel proud of myself for being right.

“And that’s supposed to make me feel better about the fact that you have complete control of my son?” Robin pressed.

“Well… I was hoping it would, yes,” Stephanie deflated a little. “This approach was his idea, for what it’s worth.”

“It’s worth squat,” Robin retorted, “if it was really his idea, why didn’t he come to me about it himself?”

“He’s nineteen years old,” Stephanie held up her hands, “and yes, I know how bad that makes me look, but he has every reason to be scared of coming to you about this.”

Robin bristled, “Scared? I’m his mother!”

“Yes, scared,” Stephanie replied patiently, “just as scared as I am.”

A flicker of sympathy behind Robin’s eyes, quickly masked, “Because I could make you lose your job over this?”

Stephanie stepped back, palms out in surrender. “My whole career is perpetually skating on thin ice; my therapy is radically unethical, and just so happens to benefit my clients the way they need. I’m no stranger to that. What I’m scared of is losing Caleb.”

Robin snorted, “Oh come on, you can’t expect me to believe that—”

“It’s the truth,” Stephanie insisted, “I won’t pretend he’s my one true love, that’s not… it’s not how we work, but I… I will be quite upset if you insist that we can no longer see each other. I’ll do it, if that’s what you really want, but I’ll be sad to lose him.”

Robin bit her lip in thought, suddenly conflicted. That had clearly taken a lot of effort for Stephanie to say, and the fact that she actually cared about Robin’s son was earning her a stay of execution, it seemed.

“You’re his therapist?” she asked eventually.

“Officially, not anymore,” Stephanie said, “but yes, I was his therapist when this started.”

“Hrrmph. You said your hypnosis benefits your clients. Did it benefit him?”

“Yes.”

“Mind telling me how?”

“I do mind, actually. Client confidentiality. All I can tell you, with his permission, is that I helped him to get over his ex-girlfriend.”

Robin’s eyes brightened a little, “You got his mind off Caitlin?”

Stephanie just nodded.

“Good,” Robin folded her arms, “I never liked that bitch. Always treated him like he was her servant, and he just went along with it.”

Her eyes travelled over me, and I became aware of the relaxed, carefree grin that was spreading over my face as my two Mistresses lavished me with kisses, caresses, and whispered suggestions.

“Is he happy?” she asked.

“Yes,” Stephanie replied firmly, “and if you can convince him to talk about it, I’m sure he’ll confirm it for you.”

“You’ll treat him well?”

“I swear it.”

“You see a long-term future with him?”

“...I’m not sure,” Stephanie itted. “Our relationship is not exactly a conventional one. We both know it may not last.”

Robin stiffened at that, but as she observed the hedonistic scene in front of her, she relaxed again.

“I appreciate your honesty,” she murmured. Then she turned to me.

“Mr. Mayor,” she called, “how do you feel about this situation you’ve landed in? Are you happy?”

“Answer her question,” Mya cooed, pressing a warm, wet smooch to my cheek.

“Happier than I’ve been in years. Like a whole new man.”

This seemed to please my Mistresses, who squealed with delight and kissed me with renewed ion.

“And you say… anyone can do this hypnosis thing? Any other women Caleb might meet in the future? Perhaps Caitlin did too?”

“Yes, I’m afraid that is all entirely possible.”

Robin sighed exasperatedly, closing her eyes as she weighed everything up in her mind. Stephanie remained outwardly calm, but her posture was stiff as a board.

“Well,” Robin said eventually, “you’re both adults, and you’re taking responsibility, and you make each other happy. I suppose that’s the most important thing.”

Stephanie exhaled slowly, every ounce of tension draining out of her at Robin’s words.

“Thank you,” she murmured. “Sincerely, thank you.”

“I have to it, you’ve been forthright with me, and I respect that,” Robin said, a little more warmth in her voice. “And I suppose there are far worse relationships for him to be in, especially if this sort of thing,” she gestured to me, “becomes more common. Just don’t do anything to hurt him—”

“I won’t,” Stephanie promised.

“—and make sure he calls his dear old mother from time to time.”

“That,” Stephanie replied, a small smile curving her beautiful lips, “is a decision he’ll have to make on his own, I’m afraid.”

“You can’t… you know, give him a nudge?”

“Not in that way, no.”

Robin rolled her eyes, “Well, what bloody good is all this hypnosis then?”

I felt familiar fingers on my chin, and suddenly I was staring into Kadi’s eyes.

“Hey,” she chided me, “no listening in on other people’s conversations. Sleep now.”

She snapped her fingers, and I was out like a light.

When I woke up, I was alone.

It was morning on Saturday. The light was streaming in through the windows in my office.

I had apparently slept here overnight… and what was more, I felt fine about it. No, better than fine. I had an unfathomable amount of energy to burn all of a sudden.

I couldn’t rest now. I had a community to serve.

And thanks to my Mistresses, I knew just how I was going to do it.