The Hypnotist turned back to the audience. "Alright, folks," he announced, "I'm going to be giving Ruby here what's known as a trigger. It's essentially a suggestion implanted into her subconscious that will activate when a certain word or phrase is said or a certain action is performed. Let me demonstrate for you." He turned his attention back to Ruby, who was still standing up, her face still giving off that mindless grin.
"Okay, Ruby," he said to her. "Whenever I say the word 'sleep,' you will return to this state of deep relaxation. Again, when I say the word 'sleep,' you will fall back into this trance and renter this deep state of relaxation. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Master," Ruby answered in the same dreamy tone in her voice.
"Excellent." The Hypnotist looked back at the audience briefly. "This will be the first trigger I give all my volunteers tonight. It saves time in the long run so I don't have to rehypnotize everyone every time I want to add a new trigger to them."
He focused back on Ruby. "I have another trigger for you, Ruby. Are you ready to hear it?"
"Yes, Master."
"Good. Then listen closely. In a moment, I'm going to wake you up. Upon your awakening, whenever you hear me and only me say the word 'freeze,' your body will instantly become like stone and you will freeze in place. You won't be able to move a muscle, as if you were a mannequin. Even your brain will freeze, and you will be unaware of anything that's going on around you while you are frozen. You will remain in this state until I say the word 'unfreeze.' At that point, you will be able to move again, completely unaware of anything that happened while frozen. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Master," Ruby answered.
"Isn't that a little dangerous?" Weiss spoke up from where she was sitting. "Will she even be able to breathe?"
The Hypnotist smiled. "Don't worry, my dear. Ruby will still be able to breathe. I can't make her do that; she'll still consciously be breathing, although it may not be noticeable." He looked back at Ruby. "Okay, Ruby, on the count of three, you will wake up, completely refreshed and energized. You won't know I put triggers in your head, but they will still be there, ready to be activated. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Master," Ruby replied.
"Good. Eyes open on the count of three. One...two...three..." The Hypnotist snapped his fingers. Instantly Ruby woke back up, blinking her eyes and looking around confused.
"What happened?" she asked.