Steven and José locked gazes. Steven scowled, but José was the angrier of the two.
"You'll pay for this, chico," said José. "I don't know how you've ruined my spell-"
"Don't blame me for your crappy spellcasting," snarled Steven, doing his best to hide his fear. "You're so pathetic, you should be proud you can even manage as much as you did. In fact, I'm surprised you were able to-"
Now THAT was interesting. José's gaze had flickered over to the dog cowering in the corner when Steven began to suggest that he wasn't capable of casting the spell. Steven had been wondering if Kyle had been one of José's previous victims, assuming that José had been intending to transform him into a chihuahua as well, but maybe that wasn't the case. Steven had heard of wizards who gained their powers through bargains with powerful creatures, offering these "familiars" some service in exchange for use of their magic. Sure, Kyle didn't look like much, but familiars usually didn't. They wore forms meant to avoid drawing attention.
Steven was still straining against the mind control spell. He had to act fast. Before José could respond, Steven lunged for the dog, grabbed it, and threw it in the pool. The moment Kyle hit the water, the spell broke.
"No!" howled José again. "This is going all wrong! How could this happen? Kyle, do something!"
The dog, however, had vanished under the surface of the water. Powerful creature or no, it looked like he couldn't swim.
Steven grinned viciously. "Your little dog can't help you now," he said. "I would have been content before if you'd simply left, but now you've taken things too far. You've attacked me and humiliated me, and for that, you will pay."
But what to do to the man?