Cana: Session One

"Alright, Cana. Just sit back and relax. Close your eyes."

Cana nodded and followed along, laying back in the chair and letting her eyes drift shut.

He placed the funnel over the barrel, and held the bottle aloft, opening it and letting the **** stream out into the funnel.

It built inside, rushing towards the bottom before...

plip

It dripped into the barrel

plip

plip

plip

Over and over the sound echoed across the room.

"You know that sound, Cana. **** dripping into a barrel. Slowly. Drip. Drip. Drip. It's familiar. It's comforting. Isn't it? You turn to **** for comfort. Regardless of how you feel about it, the sound relaxes you. The smell makes you feel at peace. And the taste... Let's you calm. Even without any, you can taste it, can't you?"

Cana nodded, but scrunched her face a bit.

"In order to purge the addiction from you, we need to first let it take hold. Let you feel the positive effects, then replace them. And take the **** and give it a negative link. Don't fight Cana. Let it take hold just this once. Give yourself over. Let the smell soothe you. Let the steady drip lull you. Let the taste bring you down. Just allow it to take hold."

Cana slumped down, slowly, sliding down the chair to a point where she was laying almost flat across it. It didn't look comfortable... But it DID look proper for a passed out drunk.

He quickly moved everything off of his desk and laid a blanket across it. He lifted and carried Cana, who lay limply, and stretched her across the desk.

"More comfy?" He asked.

"Mmm..." Came her reply.

"Good. Now Cana. Tell me about your alcoholism. Why do you go for a bottle when something is bothering you?"

"It's... Not just when I'm upset." She sighed, dreamily, like a passed out drunk trying to explain her actions to the guards. "I... Don't want to have to deal with it..."

"Deal with what?"

Cana's brows began to twitch a bit. He was making her drag up something she didn't want to talk about.

"Thinking... About you... About working... About how maybe... My guild friends may not come home..."

He always knew Cana cared deeply for her guildmates. She'd rarely say it to their faces, but she deeply loved everyone here. She was just better at showing that love to certain members. Like Lucy, based on what he had seen.

"I see. So, you drink because..?"

"It... Let's me release that. Removes the... Guilt. And the worry..."

"I see. So you let it take your thoughts away. Because otherwise you end up worrying?"

Cana nodded.

Honestly... Ignazio was kind of excited about this. He had an idea. It was bold. But it may work. If she was willing to just give herself over to **** like that, he may be able to replace her dependency to it with a dependency to him. But first...

"Cana. Before we continue I need to know something. In order for this to work, I need your full trust. Do I have that?"

"Of course." She replied with no hesitation.

"But I also need something else. I need full obedience on your part. Do I have that?"

Cana paused.

"I... Guess..?"

"Cana. Remember. Full trust. Tell me honestly, in a percentage. How much do you trust me, and how obedient do you feel to me?"

"100% and... Maybe 30%"

The 100 was great. The 30... Was worrying.

"Is there a reason you don't want to obey me?" He asked.

"I... Don't want to have to rely on you. Or anyone." She said.

"So you choose instead to rely on drinking?"

Cana fell silent. She knew he was right.

"Cana. If you could replace that drinking with something you actually liked. Let something else take over. Would you?"

"How... Would that be different?" She inquired.

"Because the **** hurts you. But if you gave in to something, or someone else. With your best interests in mind. That would be better right?"

Cana nodded.

"But first. We need to focus on removing that dependency on ****. So Cana. Repeat after me. 'I should never follow the ****'"

"I should never follow the ****"

"I should follow someone who wants the best for me."

"I should follow someone who wants the best for me."

"Good. Now every time you take a drink of ****, you'll find this thought echoing through your mind, as a reminder for what we want to accomplish here. Understood?"

"Mhm..."

"Good. Now Cana. Before we end, I want to talk to you about your guildmates. I'm sure you've noticed Erza and Levy are acting a bit different. Does it seem strange to you?"

"mh... A little...."

"Then repeat after me. Nothing my clients do is strange"

"Nothing... Your clients do is strange?"

"Right, Cana. It's all normal. I'm helping them. Any changes are there to help."

"any changes are there to help..."

"You should just ignore it"

"I should just ignore it."

"Perfect. Much like with your ****. Any time you see one of the guild members acting strange, I want these thoughts to flow through your mind. Understood?"

She nodded once more.

"Perfect. Now, one last thing. In order for this to work, I'll need to see you in here again. And while I could just rehypnotize you each time, it's easier to have a way to bring you back here. So, any time I say the words 'drowsy drunk' you will reenter this trance. This state of trust. This state of obedience.... And with that, I will wake you in a moment. When I do, your conscious mind will only recall being put into a trance, nothing else. But your subconscious mind will remember everything.... Three. Two. One... Wake!"

Cana's eyes shot open as she sat up, looking at the desk.

"How the heck did I get up here?" She asked

"You kinda fell out of the chair so.."

"So you picked me up and put me here?"

"Yeah."

Cana looked at him.

"I can't believe you touched me, perv" she said, seeming serious... Then cracking a smile. "gotcha"

Ignazio breathed a sigh of relief

"After all this time you're still a child."

Cana hopped down.

"You like that about me."

He smiled.

"Yeah. I guess I do."

Cana began walking toward the door and stopped. Wringing her hands nervously.

"S-so... Same time tomorrow?" She asked.

"well, we can if you'd like. But it's advisable to let the hypnosis have a few days to settle in." He said.

Cana looked down, dejectedly

"I see... Well then..."

"But there's no rule against eating lunch and chatting together"

Her eyes lit up once more.

"I was planning on having steak tomorrow. But I'm sure that doesn't interest you." He taunted.

"Oh you are SO on! Bring on the meat!" She boomed, smiling wide.

It had been a good day.

And once more, night fell on Fiore.