Shasta dutifully followed Mesmero into a small booth, padding along on all fours. Inside, a shorter woman waited for them.
Mesmero addressed the curious tiger. "Sit on this chair like a human, and then don't move."
Shasta did as commanded, so Mesmero continued, "This woman will paint your face. Don't move during this process, and don't speak. I will be back shortly."
He turned to the woman, "You know what to do."
Mesmero left the room, closing the door behind him. He didn't want anyone seeing John until he was ready.
An hour passed, and Mesmero returned, carrying a mysterious box.
He inspected the make-up artist's work. John's face was now completely painted like a tiger's, complete with yellow contacts, fake whiskers, and false teeth.. Mesmero nodded to the woman, and she hastily left.
"Shasta, wake up." John blinked and stared at him.
"I am your master; you will obey me. You are a tiger. Tigers do not need to wear clothes. Take off your clothes, but leave on your underwear."
"Yes master." John complied with his master's wishes, and he took off everything but his underwear, including his cat ears and tail.
Mesmero opened up the box, and pulled out a tiger costume. "Put this on." he commanded.
Once again, Shasta obeyed, putting on the full body suit. It covered most of his body, except for his face, which was already painted. He looked like a tiger from head to toe.
"You are not wearing a costume. Tigers don't need to wear costumes. This is your natural body. This is how you were meant to look." He petted the costume's tail. "This is your tail." He scratched the fake ears. "These are your ears." He brushed against the whiskers. "These are your whiskers." He petted the costume. "This is your fur. You love to have it petted, and you always make sure to keep it groomed." He touched the paws. "These are your claws. You don't need hands. Tigers don't have hands. You have nice furry paws."
"You are a tiger, nothing but a big circus tiger. Do you understand?"
"Yes master."
"You are a tiger. Tigers do not speak English. From now on, you can no longer speak English. You don't want to speak English, anyways. You are a tiger. You love to growl and purr and roar. You don't need to say anything else. Now, when I snap my fingers, you will wake up, give the biggest roar you ever could, and remember absolutely none of your time hypnotized. Do you understand?"
Shasta nodded.
"Very good. Remember you are a tiger." Mesmero snapped his fingers, and Shasta let out a huge roar. The tiger bolted out of the tent, eager to explore his new home. At the same time, Mesmero packed up John's clothes, and calmly exited the other direction. He smiled. This was going to be an interesting day.