Dr. Vanessa Madsen crossed and uncrossed her legs under the glass table, drawing Jim’s attention to her silky legs. Unlike ordinary work days, she wasn’t wearing a masculine-like suit but a short leather skirt that made her generous curves even more enticing. The choice of attire was both a tease and a reward for the mid-forties blogger and entrepreneur who had just written a glowing review of her book entitled Unconventional Therapeutic Approaches - Changing the Paradigms of Mental Health in the 21st Century. 
It had been a guilty pleasure of hers, a deconstruction of everything Psychology thought it knew about the human mind. A self-published title, it had taken the world by surprise from the very first moment, with eminent scholars and media outlets from all over the world reporting on it and dying to know more about her and her unique vision of the problems described. Vanessa appreciated the sudden fame but not the constant meddling in her affairs that followed. She was always receiving calls and emails, inviting her to conferences and international symposiums or wanting to interview her. She declined the former because she didn’t want to be a part of academic disputes and ignored the latter, save for Jim.
James Lawson, Jim for his friends and family, was the owner of health-has-no-boundaries.com, a website created in the height of the pandemic and that had become a beacon of hope for hundreds of thousands of people online when confusion and despair reigned all around. In his site, he talked about his own experiences with depression and various other health conditions, explored the most recent discoveries in the world of medicine and how they impacted the common people, and recommended articles and books for anyone looking to broaden their horizons without fear-mongering or prejudice of any kind. Dr. Madsen’s book had been a real eye-opener in more ways than one and the fascination of reading her words had him seek her out. She enjoyed the way he approached her and decided to meet him for an informal talk/casual interview about her book and therapy. So far, things had been working out better than expected. 
James was tall, had broad shoulders, emerald-green eyes, and a chiseled jaw. He had the smile of a man who had been through a lot in life but had always found a way to persevere no matter how much the odds were stacked against him. He was kind-hearted, loved animals, and couldn’t imagine a day when he didn’t come home to be greeted by his three beautiful furry babies, two cats - one black and one white - and a tail-wagging Pitbull Terrier too adorable for words. From the moment they met, Dr. Madsen knew there was more to him that he kept hidden from prying eyes and this talk was a great opportunity to unearth the truth and have some fun with it. All she needed was the right angle and she had just found it.
“I’m sorry, what was I saying?” Jim asked, averting his gaze from her seductive legs. The informal interview was taking place in a five-star hotel in Richmond, Virginia that was owned by one of her hypno-pets. Jim had flown all the way over there from Lincoln, Nebraska to talk to her in person because that’s how dedicated he was to his readers and followers. The first twenty minutes had been nothing but professional, but he now found himself getting distracted quite often and spending more time admiring her good looks than checking the notes he had brought for the ride.
No one could say Vanessa wasn’t attractive. The buxom brunette had a magnetic smile that melted anyone who looked at it for too long, and he was already experiencing its effects. Having trouble remembering what he was doing was one of them.
“I believe you were about to ask me about chapter twenty-two...” she tapped the underside of the table to make him follow the sound and stare at her legs again. Jim was quick to comply, his subconscious already responding to her subtle programming.
“Ah, yes, of course!” He cleared his throat and nodded.
Chapter twenty-two was entitled The Hypnotic Conundrum. It was the second-longest chapter in the end and contained a plethora of examples of how hypnosis could unravel even the most entangled of minds. Vanessa’s suggestive language and vivid descriptions of the multiple scenarios presented were quite enthralling and yet something was missing. There were no fetish undertones... or were there?
“There was something I found quite curious about this chapter...” Jim continued, his lower lip trembling as he spoke. 
“Yes?” Vanessa smiled.
“Every single case mentioned is riveting but it doesn’t seem to tell the entire picture. There’s this - how shall I put it? - sexual aura that’s implied in your words, almost as if you’re inviting the reader to discover what lies beneath. Do you agree with this assessment? Did you write this segment to go past therapy and embrace kink?”
“Well, kink is by nature therapeutic because it allows us to embrace the depths of our true selves, so it’s not a matter of going past something but acknowledging it its true power. You’re right in saying that it was done on purpose though but of all the people who reviewed my book so far, you’re the only one that has mentioned it. Your capacity to read between the lines is impressive. I like that.”
“Are you serious?” he asked, a little confused. He loved compliments as much as the next person, but it hit different when she did it and he couldn’t grasp why.
“Yes. Have I told you how much I appreciate all the hard work you’ve put into our site ever since you started it? I was one of your first readers and I love how far you’ve come.”
“Thank you. That’s... hmmm... very nice to hear.”
“Are you blushing, Jim? I can call you Jim, right?”
“Sure.” He scratched the back of his head and tried to get things back on track, but he couldn’t. Whatever questions he was supposed to ask next were slipping away from his mind. Now, she could take control of the conversation just like she wanted to from the start.
“What are your kinks, Jim?”
“Excuse me?” 
“Someone who notices my innuendos the way you did is someone with secrets to tell. I’d love for you to open yourself to me just like I’m doing with you.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He glanced at his papers again, but Vanessa disarmed him by rubbing his right leg with her stockinged feet.
“Now, that’s a lie,” she said. “And you don’t need to lie to me.”
“Dr. Madsen, if we could go back to the scope of this interview, I’d be...”
“Grateful?” she completed. “Please save your gratitude for some other time. Right now, I’d like you to indulge me because I can tell it’s what you want to do as well.”
This time, Jim didn’t say a word. He wanted to, but none of his thoughts seemed to make any sense. He had no trouble talking to beautiful women, but Vanessa was changing all that without even trying, the sweet cadence of her voice infiltrating the deepest recesses of his subconscious. 
“You’re looking a little tense there,” Vanessa said. “Perhaps this will help. Are you a dog or a cat person?”
“Neither” he replied. “I consider myself an animal person. That’s why I became a vegan a decade ago and never looked back.”
“And why do you love animals so much?” Vanessa continued to rub his leg, sensual spirals coming to life with each rotating motion.
“Because they’re better than us. They’re pure and their purity speaks to me. I had the privilege of growing up surrounded by all kinds of animals and now I have a furry family of my own. I love them and miss them.”
“I’ve seen the pictures you posted online. They’re all quite beautiful, especially the little Pittie. What’s her name again?”
“Nike, but what most people don’t know is that before it was a sports brand name, it referred to...”
“... the Greek goddess of strength, speed, and victory,” Vanessa completed his sentence again. “Yes, I know my mythology and I also love to win, so it’s a perfect name for me as well.”
“Right... Well, in chapter twenty-two, you also talk about...”
“Jim, let it go for now. We’re talking about animals, and most specifically about pets. Pet is also a wonderful word. It’s small, rolls off the tongue, and makes people happy. Pet owners love to talk about their babies, and for a good reason. They bring out the best in them, don’t they?”
“Yes, I suppose you’re right.”
“Don’t suppose and say it’s so. I’m right about many things, and one of them is something you’re not saying out loud. You love pets, that we already know, but you also love the idea of being one yourself. You take care of all these sweet animals that come into your life but how wonderful would it be if you weren’t taken care of as well? When your pets cuddle next to you, I bet you dream of being cuddled too, all your thoughts dissolving into the sweet euphoria of letting go of your human skin for a moment, and live a carefree life on your fours, a leather collar wrapped around your neck. These dreams started when you were a young man only to grow into an underlying obsession as the years went by. You don’t have them all the time, of course, but I can see them resurfacing in your eyes as I speak. Your kink, your greatest desire you dared not reveal to anyone before, is that you want to be a pet. How am I doing so far, Jim?”
“I...” he blushed, her toes stimulating the nerves on his leg as they trailed upwards. The blogger gulped, his fingers in disarray over the table. How the fuck did she know all that?
“In my line of work, being perceptive is a must and I’ve been around the kink world longer than most,” she said as if she had read his mind. “People like you, with long-repressed urges they know not how to deal with, all have certain things in common, but the most striking one is the longing in their demeanor. I saw it as soon as you walked in. I want you to understand there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s okay to have fantasies and needs often looked down on and seen as unconventional. Your kinks are an important part of your persona and it’s unhealthy to neglect them for long. You don’t have to do that anymore if you don’t want to.”
“What do you mean?” Jim muttered, his eyes locked on hers. Vanessa licked her lips and stopped her feet next to his tumescent cock. With a purr, she said,
“Oh, you know exactly what I mean,” she reached for his copy of her book and circled the word “hypnosis” with her manicured purple nails. “The world is full of impossible things, but this is not one of them. Everything you dream of is only a trance away.”
Vanessa pulled her feet away from him and rose from her soft chair, stretching her arms and moaning like a woman who had just experienced the best sex of her life. The disconcerting gesture made him even more aroused, and he didn’t notice the pendant dangling from her slender fingers until it was already swinging before his eyes.
It had a dog in it. A curled-up dog with jade eyes and an iridescent tail. As it moved, it filtered all the colors of the rainbow and reflected them into his surprised pupils. Jim was already following it before being told to, taken aback by her straightforwardness and his desire to comply.
“Pet,” she cooed. “Anyone can be a pet if their mind is in the right place, and yours has been dying to go there for as long as you remember. Imagine all the times you dreamed of letting go and becoming one with the animal spirit within you. Just like your little Pittie, you can have all the love you need if you listen to my voice.”
Jim took a deep breath and felt his mind getting foggy. Was this happening or was he just imagining things? When things seem too good to be true, they are, but he had never had such a vivid fantasy before. It had to be true just like the pull of gravity dragging his eyes into the very center of the pendant and the unrelenting chromatic spectacle that washed over him like soothing rain. This was not the plan, not the way he imagined his weekend to be, but so much better.
“Pets...” Vanessa whispered. “... have all the luck in the world when they’re being looked after. They always have food on the ready, comfy beds, and enough attention to make them melt into whimpering puddles of joy. How good it is to be a pet that SLEEPs, then wakes up, only to SLEEP and wake up again. Good pets have no worries and nothing to fear, and just as easily as they rise from their slumber to greet the sun and the loving eyes of their protectors, they SLEEP some more, deeper and deeper, deeper and deeper...
“Listen to me, Jim. There’s no reason for you to not be blessed with such an existence other than fear, but here you are safe. Here, your mind can rest and tell your body to go loose. The human form is beautiful, always exciting and new, but it pales compared to the beauty of a snuggling dog licking its owner’s feet or a gentle cat purring white its ears are being scratched. The purity you love so much is not a figment of your imagination but a reality in its own right. The pet you see in your mind’s eye is the pet you’ve always been. This pet listens. This pet yearns to please and be trained, and SLEEPs on command. The pendant swings and you SLEEP. My voice sings and you SLEEP. You don’t even need to close your eyes. You’re always aSLEEP when I want you to. SLEEP, Jim. SLEEP!”
The blogger stared at the pendant, no longer seeing its shape but only the luminous trail left by the repetitive swinging. His mind drifted in her words, reduced to an echo of her overpowering will. Vanessa’s words were everywhere, pulling the strings of his subdued thoughts. He could no longer snap out of it even if he wanted to.
“I see the pet you’ve hidden all your adult life,” she said. “I see it before me and in the pendant I’m holding. You are like this effigy, crystallized and powerless, responding only to me, forever SLEEPing, and wanting to be at my beck and call. See my hands caressing your golden fur... feel the collar wrapping around your neck... bow before the gentle tug of my silver leash... You are a pet, a good pet for me, going for the ride of your life after being rescued from the boredom of vanilla life. You are my pet, and you obey. Good pets always obey.”
Jaim nodded in silence, all independent thoughts blurred out from existence. It really was that easy to become something else, something better, the true embodiment of Nature, gracious and perfect. He slid down from the chair, still staring at the crystal shape, an obedient and loyal creature that was to love her without questioning.
“Always aSLEEP, always submissive, always at my feet... You are my pet.” Dr. Madsen finished weaving her hypnotic web, the layered triggers snuffing away all resistance. The carpeted floor called to Jim and demanded his anatomy to change. He assumed the position of a yearning dog, wagging his imaginary tail to the sound of her commands. Pet. A good pet. A grateful and subservient pet.
Dr. Madsen pocketed the pendant and looked down at her new plaything. Once more, her instincts had proven correct. Jim and his eager mind were now in perfect sync with her desires. Of course, Jim wasn’t that good of a name for a pet, was it? Jimbo? JJ? Jazz? So many options to choose from once he assimilated his alternate identity for real. 
The interview was over, and no more questions would be asked. She closed the book and offered him her legs to sniff and adore. He barked, awake in SLEEP, the sweet taste of black stockings on his lips.

The End