Madame Illusia smirked with satisfaction at her latest volunteer's progress. With a flick of her wand, Max's hydrant disappeared the stage was cleaned of Max's scent marking. Max looked over at her, smiling a big doggy grin with his tongue lolling out. With a theatrical poof of purple smoke, Illusia appeared right before Max.
"Such a good boy, Maxy!" Illusia praised with a ruffle of Damon's still markedly human hair. "Let's show the audience how obedient and well trained you are, shall we?"
Madame Illusia lifted her hand in front of Damon's eyes, wrapping the dog-man's attention with her every move. With a quick flash, a doggy bone treat appeared in Illusia's fingers.
"Sit, boy." Illusia commanded. Max immediately plopped down, tail flicked to his right side. The scent of the treat and allure of Madame's presence thoroughly overwhelmed his new senses.
With a quick smile, Illusia gently placed the treat upon Max's nose. "Now, boy, stay...." With another burst of smoke, Madame appeared thirty feet across the stage from the new canine.
"....." Illusia whispered. Max, frozen at the enchantress's word, whimpered at not hearing the command. "...." Illusia whispered again. Max was becoming more and more frustrated, straining to hear the Madame's voice. As if fueled by his desire, Max's ears began to pull upward on his head, flattening out and coming to fuzzy points.
"Now, pet." Illusia whispered once more. But this time, Max heard the command clear as the ringing of a bell. Overjoyed, Max flipped the treat into the air and caught it in his maw. The treat was the most delicious thing Max had tasted, and his tail wagged rapidly in his delight.
With her usual panache, Madame Illusia reappeared at center stage. "Good boy! Good boy!" Illusia praised. She knelt before the new puppy, and reached her hands behind his newly pointed and rapidly forming Shepherd ears. "You've been missing this too, haven't you boy?" scritching and massaging the new appendages. Max was in heaven! He'd never imagined the being petted like this could feel so amazingly good. Instinctively, Max dropped to a laying position and rolled over, exposing his rapidly furring belly. Illusia accepted the invitation, and stroked Max's belly to the guffaws and explosive applause of the audience.
Everyone was loving the show, with the exception of a noticeably quiet Monica...