A moment later, Jeff and his sister heard a deafening crash coming from the bottom of the stairs, followed by the sounds of furious barking and feline yowling. They both cringed, not just at the noise that assaulted their newly sensitive ears, but at the reminder that they were not the only animals in the house. The two of them ran down the stairs, which was surprisingly easy to do on four legs, terrified of what awaited them below.
The family's two pets, their dog Buddy and their cat Princess, were both growling, fur standing up straight, as they eyed Vandal with suspicion. But he didn't flinch. "Ah, you didn't tell me you two had company over!", he said when he saw the former humans scrambling their way into the living room. "Maybe there's some more fun to be had in this house after all!"
Buddy and Princess were immediately distracted from trying to scare off the intruder by the sudden appearance of two new pets in the house. Princess approached Jeff curiously, her crooked tail swinging back and forth behind her as if to form a question mark over her head. She purred softly as she came closer, and Jeff realized that he could understand her just as easily as if she was speaking plain English.
"Well, hello there," Princess said in a distinctly sultry voice that made Jeff shudder. "I haven't seen you around here before - and I'm sure I would remember a unique, handsome coat like that. Where did you come from, stud?"
"Princess... n-no, it's me!", Jeff replied in that same animal language, having already seen firsthand that he could no longer speak human if he tried. "I'm not supposed to be a cat! It's me, Jeff!"
"Hmmm... 'Jeff'. I like that name," the other cat said, her swooping, expressive tail now practically batting Jeff on the nose as she pressed her body against his. "Reminds me of that human boy who lives here. But he can't hold a candle to you..."
Jeff involuntarily started to purr as Princess rubbed her fur against his, but he stopped himself as soon as he realized what he was doing. He couldn't let this go any further... could he?
Meanwhile, Buddy wasted no time greeting the new dog in the house, bounding over with a familiarly goofy grin. Missy - or whatever her name was supposed to be, she couldn't quite remember - was startled when the male sheepdog stuck his nose right up to her rear end! But she calmed down a little bit when she remembered that this was just how dogs greeted one another - by sniffing each other's butts, of course.
And Buddy was presenting his backside right in front of Missy's face as he explored hers, clearly expecting that she would return the favor. But that was crazy! She couldn't do that! Her resistance wavered, though, as she watched the enthusiastically wagging tail that seemed to be inviting her in to what sat below. Maybe just a little whiff... It would be rude not to, right?
The very moment that Missy started to give in to her canine instincts, she realized just how important this ritual was for dogs like her. The smell wasn't gross, like she had imagined, it was amazing! Her sense of smell, so much more powerful than it had ever been before, could tell her so much with a single sniff. The food that Buddy had been eating recently... the state of his health... even the virility of the sperm in the slowly emerging red rocket not far from where Missy's nose was... It all told the doggy part of her brain that Buddy would make an excellent mate. And that thought was starting to overpower her...
Vandal watched all of this with a sly grin on his muzzle, and not just because the animals at his feet were no longer interested in biting him. "Looks like we've got a couple of real lovebirds here," he said tauntingly, only to realize that Jeff and Missy were a little too preoccupied right now to listen to him. "Side note," Vandal said to himself, "I gotta remember to turn some people into actual lovebirds at some point. That sounds like a real hoot!"
But he wasn't sure what to do with the four amorous animals in the room. Should he leave them here just as they are, and go find some new victims to prey on? Or should he grab his spray paint again and mess them up a little more? Both of those options sounded pretty exciting... but Vandal was an artist above all else, and he was waiting for the right inspiration to strike.