Heroine Rise

"Could you step in here for a second? I'd like to talk to you about something, in private."

Sabrina stood with her head turned and her back toward the woman who'd caught her on her way back to her office. Jesse, as she was known around the building. She made it a point to not keep the blonde waiting longer than a few seconds before answering.

"Sure."

The red-headed consultant turned back toward Jesse and entered the room at a slow pace, taking note of everything she could see of the blonde from the corner of her eye. It was a strange request, to be led into a vacant conference room that wasn't even on the floor Jesse worked. It had the classic signs of an ambush in Sabrina's mind, with things seeming coincidental and innocent enough, especially with Jesse's calm expression.

Sabrina scanned the room as quickly as she could, looking for signs of at least someone else's presence, or something that would look out-of-place. The only thing that qualified was Jesse as she shut the door behind them to ensure the privacy she asked for.

"I'll admit, it is a little strange meeting in here instead of in my office. Is everything alright?"

"Yeah. Well, sort of. I was actually in here to try to prep myself to ask your advice about something. I meant to go to your office, but you showed up as soon as I opened the door."

"Advice?"

Sabrina paid close attention to Jesse's face, looking to see if any shift or tick there would give away a different intention.

"About someone I know. Used to be a colleague of mine," Jesse clarified.

"Were they with the company?"

"Not...necessarily. I've seen them for drinks frequently in the past."

"But, not so much now?"

"No, unfortunately."

Jesse's sullen look at where she stood with her friend appeared to be the most genuine thing about her explanation, but Sabrina specifically looked for things that sounded far from genuine.

"I can assume your friends' problems are the kind that I could help with if he worked here, yes?"

"I think so, but they, he...I want to be the one to approach him about it, at least to show concern. Directing him to a counselor might give him the wrong impression, as if to say 'something's wrong with you.''"

"As a counselor, I admit I do find that stigma annoying, but I understand where you're coming from Jessica. Why don't you tell me a little more about your friend?"

Sabrina took a chair near the long desk, and Jesse found herself doing the same. Sighing almost exasperatedly, Jesse tried figuring out where to start, something Sabrina was more than used to. She stopped herself from looking at her watch, and let the other woman try to find her words.

"We'd met at something work-related for me a while ago. We dated a bit, had almost gotten serious, but it didn't last. It ended amicably enough, and we've kept a good friendship since."

Sabrina nodded and gave a look of consideration, both measured gestures meant to imply "I'm listening, please continue." She really was listening, but looking to read between the lines.

"At a bar we sometimes meet at, he told me about this new woman he'd been seeing. I was unfamiliar with her, until he pointed out she attended a previous, crowded engagement. The worry started setting in once I remembered exactly who he was talking about. I hate to make snap judgments about people at first sight, but I had a bad feeling about this woman almost immediately."

"Why? What about her gave you this feeling?"

"You ever meet someone who gave off this almost unmissable high-class, hoity-toity vibe? That's the first thing that came to mind about her."

"Was she some sort of executive? Maybe a VP or a CEO?"

"I forget what she was where she worked, but I don't think she was that high up. You'd honestly think she was though, the way it looked like some guys were doing things for her as if they were still at work. By now, she could be on her way to such a position, one way or another."

Both Sabrina's eyebrows raised without her looking in Jesse's direction.

"That's a lot to estimate about someone you just met."

"I hate doing it, but I've met so many like her in my life, who just think they own the world, and don't mind using and abusing anyone close to them for nothing more than their whim."

"And you think your friend is in that kind of jeopardy?"

"My intuition says 'yes,' and I'm inclined to trust it. I know it'd be too much to tell him 'leave her, she's not the girl for you,' but it's better than saying nothing and watching things go bad."

"I hope you have a middle-ground in mind."

Jesse laughed. "Yeah. I'd be happy with just saying 'while I'm glad you're happy with this person. I think it might be worth it to step back and think of this woman objectively, and where you stand with her. Don't go blind to what she's doing if you notice things."

"Is there anything else you've noticed?"

"Not me personally, but there have been rumors about her, from others who work at my friend's company. I wouldn't give them weight, except they concur with my feelings."

"I see," Sabrina said evenly. "My professional opinion, from everything you've told me, is stick to your middle-ground."

"Really?" Jesse asked, genuinely surprised.

"Yes. Don't be afraid in the slightest to tell him what you think and fear, in those exact words. If I'd met your friend, my direct advice wouldn't be too far off from what you want to say. But can I point something out to you?"

"Ok."

"The 'how' you make your statement to your friend can make a world of difference. Not to sound judgmental myself Jessica, but you seemed a bit nervous about just bringing this issue to me on behalf of a friend. Do you think it'll be easier just admitting this to your friend?"

"I was more worried about the 'what' to say than the 'how.'"

"But I'm sure he and even I could see what you can't when you say it. There's a bit of apprehension there; it's clearly across your face, and could be easily misconstrued as something it's not, or something you're hiding. Though you're friends, it has to be hard enough being the messenger and a...possible former lover, delivering unsatisfying news about his current one."

Jesse leaned her head back against the chair, the lines and creases on her distraught-looking face showing apprehension as clearly as ever. Sabrina held back a smirk, wondering how Jesse didn't bother to think that wouldn't be an issue. She did look at her watch, to see how close it was to lunch time.

"Is our time up doc?" Jesse said sarcastically.

"No, not necessarily. We can continue to talk about this issue, but did you have something else you wanted to discuss?"

"You mentioned the 'how' I would speak to my friend earlier. I was going to ask if you had any relaxation tips for that, so I sound casual or something, for when I speak to him."

"Funny you mention that, I was going to suggest the same thing. But I'd much prefer that happen in my office."

Jesse nodded in agreement as she got up and walked to the door with Sabrina.

As the two women walked out, Sabrina hoped that no one would see them come out together, and for unnecessary, unsubstantiated rumors to spread.

Entering Sabrina's office, she asked Jesse to take the chaise lounge sofa near the wall, assuring her that she wasn't here for a full session, and that this wouldn't take long.

"It is the best position to relax in, and that's exactly what I recommend for giving advice for your friend - to relax."

Jesse sat on the lounging chair, adjusting her blazer in a strange way, looking uncomfortable, as if this was silly.

"That doesn't look very relaxed, but hopefully that how it feels, Jessica. How do you usually relax yourself?"

"A hot shower and a good book or TV show."

"Sounds effective, but do you ever notice the smaller details, maybe the things you unconsciously do to relax?"

"Like what?"

"It's the simplest things that surprise people, believe it or not. Like breathing."

"Breathing. And...?" the blonde asked incredulously.

"Merely breathing. It really shouldn't be such a strange thing to imagine. Perhaps after a nice, leisurely hot shower, and right before you search for the bookmark in your latest book or click to the appropriate channel, you sit where you are in your house or apartment, and just find yourself taking a breath."

Jesse thought about that for a second, never noticing her body starting to recapture that exact feeling.

"You know that breath Jessica; the one where you finally wear off the tedious, nettling rat-race of the day, where you've settled in to your comfort zone. I've seen it, and done it before so many times myself. Remember that system's panic from two months ago? How it almost became a much bigger problem than it was?"

"Yeah," she sighed, remembering one of their company's not-so-finest hours.

"Three-straight days of programming, crunching, job-saving diligence that by all accounts all of us barely scraped through. The night we heard the situation was more or less resolved, I thought of all of us going home to our families, friends, or our own private comfort zones and simultaneously breathing out a collective breath of relief. That slow intake of breath that sped up a bit as we all thought of our problems big and small, all the important and needless elements of the day, collecting everything up. All the memories in our heads, all the feelings in our bodies. In one full intake of breath, all our stress was there, in our lungs."

"And as nature intended, we breathed out, long and hard, letting it all go, free from worry, the working chains that bound us broken. We exhaled and came to realize that the rest of that time was there solely for us, only what we wanted, what we desired, frankly, what we needed. And the first thing all of us needed to do was relax."

Jesse stared up at nothing in particular, easily able to recall the months prior. Jesse was considered a hell of a leader, keeping everyone's spirits up enough for the profit of all, and even the survival of some. Sabrina figured the breath she took was stronger than most at the end of her day.

"I wouldn't be surprised if some like me decided that after feeling that first breath of sweet release, they would treat themselves to another. If the first breath was of release, the next is certainly about reflection, about what they just left behind, about mentally planning the joys to come. Some of the best things in life really are free, and breathing should always be near the top, for what it can give you. And since it costs nothing, you can take as many breaths as you want. Each as deeply as you like, and long as you like."

"And I absolutely love what they do for us. I've spent whole nights just forgetting everything and enjoying singular bliss of breathing. It's such a vibrant, cleansing experience that is quite underrated. You don't only get release and reflection from it. If you breathe in and out long enough and enjoy it, your breaths can bring you to a readying state. Even though the next day or the next assignment is so far away and isn't vexing you one bit, you can breath and imagine how well you can manage whatever the future holds for you. Maybe you have a big assignment to deal with. One big breath later, and you know you can handle it. One long breath later and you make a long trip to wherever you're needed. One deep breath later, and you can have an important talk with someone about a problem you think they have."

Sabrina didn't even have to suggest Jesse's eyes being closed, but her sentiency was reduced to breathing deeply and Sabrina's unheard but understood words. She was nearly sprawled out on Sabrina's furniture like so many before her, lulled into a stealthy nap that creeped up upon her from nowhere, but was everywhere around her now.

"Yes, Jessica, this is the perfect state to help you prepare for the problem you've come to me with. You're not a worrisome, jealous ex-lover; you are a calm, collected, concerned friend whose worries should not be visible at all. I can help you through the talk you want to have step by step. All you need to do is trust me. Can you do that Jessica?"

She mumbled something that sounded affirmative, but the hypnotist wanted to be sure.

"You can speak clearly Jessica. Tell me if you trust me."

"I...trust...you," she breathed out languidly.

Her trust wasn't really needed for continuing on, but it was a nice indicator of how she had to go to satisfy Sabrina.

"Then allow me to help you go through the motion of how you should approach your friend. Find yourself easily, effortlessly standing up with my help. You'll stay in this wonderfully dreamy state, breathing as easily and deeply as you want to."

The red-headed counselor took the blonde by her hands and tugged at her arms, feeling the muscles in them slowly accepting her help to stand up. Jesse stood up somewhat aware of not lying down anymore, waiting for what else Sabrina had to tell her.

"Pretend that you're in your friend's presence. You're meeting, looking forward to a good night of drinks, conversation, and laughs. But you have something important to tell him first. But you're not worried about telling him, because you know exactly how to say it, and what to say. He's your friend, understanding and willing to listen; you can tell him anything you think is important."

Jesse looked glassy-eyed at Sabrina, her mind sorting through the process of seeing her friend as clearly as possible under the circumstances.

"Look, Jon, I-"

"Sleep," Sabrina pulled Jesse in with a very impromptu hand-shake induction, suffering from momentary panic. She'd heard the last name she expected to from Jesse's lips. She repeated the phrase over and over again, saturating her mind with the command until she was sure that Jesse was incapable of doing anything until Sabrina told her to. Her new subject's head rested softly against her shoulder; her breathing was slow and peaceful. Sabrina felt Jesse's breath against her neck, laying her down back against the chaste chair.

Sabrina almost clumsily fell into the seat nearest to where Jesse lied, trying to gather her thoughts, hoping she hadn't been to hasty in what she did, or what she began to think.

"Jon is such a common name; you could be easily confusing who Jessica is talking about with someone else entirely. Stop worrying," is what she tried to tell herself in her own head. But the longer she thought about it, the more things started piecing themselves together.

The party described could easily be the one Sabrina attended years ago, merely as a gesture of being social, which would mean Sabrina was the "hoity-toity" woman who was so off-putting Jesse, a point that made her smirk as she always had a neutral opinion of Jesse, but had little reason to think of her as positive outside of her management skills.

All the suggestive breathing she'd put Jesse through, she found herself trying to avail herself of the same techniques, but Sabrina still needed her wits about her. The compulsion to reach for a cigarette to calm her nerves was lost on Sabrina except for circumstances like this. She wondered if trying to feign Sabrina as a bossy "executive" type should be taken as a compliment for how she tried to hide the identity of who she really meant. Her bossiness from that party, judged from a distance, amounted to harmless NLP tricks born out of boredom. She could've put on a show for people there if she wanted, but that wouldn't instill much confidence that Sabrina wouldn't be pixilated or discreet about using her skills in a professional setting. She certainly didn't expect to be noticed like she had been.

"Jesse, come up a little bit from your sleepy state. Awaken slightly for me."

Jesse's body slowly became more animated, shifting like someone on the verge of waking up, but fighting it.

"Can you hear me?"

"Yes."

"You do trust me, don't you?"

"Yes."

"What's the full name of the man you're concerned about?"

"Jon...Task," she breathed a weird kind of sigh, as if saying his name prompted an emotion in her.

Her body shifted enough that something on her made an electronic sound. The digital sound from a smart phone, Sabrina guessed. Sabrina felt the pockets of Jesse's body, and gently pulled her phone from her body. The hypnotist was surprised, yet not so surprised, to see Jesse's phone set to record.

Just about everything made contextual sense at that point. From the moment Sabrina and Jon got together, and even before that, she'd sensed there was person in his life that used to be of importance, enough so that when things went bad, it affected him in a way hard to hide. He probably hid it well, but when it came to observing people, she noticed things most people never bother paying attention to. When they got together, under pretty unconventional conditions, he seemed "cured" of the former love that ailed him. She never tried to cure him of it, nor would she have, even if asked. They just enjoyed their time together, and had not brought up sore points of their pasts yet. She would've never have guessed that unknown person of former interest was so close in proximity, just an office floor below them. She wondered, if she knew about Jesse from the start, would she have done anything to ensure she wouldn't be a problem for Jon anymore. That hardly mattered now as Jesse herself made the first move, and Sabrina now controlled the not-so-clandestine game initiated by the blond ex.

The sounds of movement and small talk outside her office signaled it was lunch time. Sabrina wasn't sure that she even had much of an appetite now; a growling stomach told her she was hungry, but her workload was looking to be busier than expected today.

Turning the recording function off, she set it down and moved to work more on Jesse, when the door opened behind her.

"Sabrina, I was hoping you'd accomp-"

Jon peeked his head in, to see Sabrina looking back at him shocked, and someone else laying on the couch behind her, looking very much asleep. The smile he greeted her with turned to confusion, the first thing that came to mind was he'd stumbled across a private session. He was about to whisper an apology, but a closer look at who was sleeping made him fully enter the room.

"Jesse? Sabrina what the hell is going on h-"

"Shhh," Sabrina quickly came to Jon and put her finger against his lips, silencing him.

"Let me explain - journey of azure."

Jon felt upset at the sight of his old lover, and his new, mischievous lover in the positions he found them in. Indignation tried rising up in him, looking for answers, but it unfortunately crashed against a tidal wave of crystal blue that filled his eye-sight. She made sure it was all he could see, and she let previously installed suggestions and the beauty of her eyes keep him from thinking of anything else except those eyes.

Jon was pushed back against the door. He heard it close behind him as Sabrina pressed further, and part of his mind used that to shake himself from her gaze. Not willing to let him gain an edge, she pressed their lips together softly, bombarding him further. The hypnotist realized in that kiss everything she'd felt before she ran into Jesse, how much more she wanted of last night. The memory of her successful role-play flashed in her mind, and the kiss deepened. She possessively gripped his tie and pulled him to her like a leash, using her other hand to squeeze a pressure point on his shoulder, feeling him moan into the kiss. She pulled away after a few seconds, and kept their eyes locked, watching him begin to fade. Grouping triggers together like that was something Sabrina was getting accustomed to, and it fascinated her to see him fade from the kissing spell, but his eyes remain open and glassy as ever from looking into her eyes.

Sabrina led her second submissive down to the chair she'd sat in earlier. She stood up, controlling her breathing yet again, looking down at the two tranced bodies merely open and waiting. The weight of whom she had in her chairs gave her deep consideration. One had turned out to be a jealous rival, and the other her most prized submissive, which the first was foolish enough to try to encroach on. She didn't think that Jon would have believed or entertained Jesse's opinion, but that wasn't the point in her mind. Jon belonged to Sabrina now, as far as the hypnotist was concerned, and she would have the final say of if and when someone else would have a shot, which wasn't likely at all.