Chapter 6: The Last Surprise
Lisa shivered in the cold mud as she pawed at the heavy iron chain that tethered her to her doghouse. A chastity belt had been locked onto her, denying her the solace of even a moment of pleasure. The people that passed by all stared at her in contempt. Several of them took photos to share with their friends. Every single one of them was someone from Lisa's past. She knew them, and they knew her. A few of the passersby had dogs with them. Even the dogs were better off than her, for they had won the approval of their masters. Lisa wasn't allowed to be with Mistress, she was being punished. But the worst part was, she
deserved
to be punished...
Lisa woke from her nightmare and shuddered. That had been a bad one. Then she realized that this time, the horror of her dream hadn't come from being a dog. It had come from the idea of being a
bad
dog.
She shouldn't have been surprised. Although Lisa still hadn't entirely rid herself of the woman that she had once been, she was more pet than person now, and that had affected the nature of her hopes and fears. The old Lisa was afraid of being a pet. The new Lisa embraced her life as Miss Davenport's pampered poodle, and worried about what all dogs worry about - pleasing her owner.
Nightmares or no nightmares, Lisa had no reason to be concerned on that account. It was obvious that Carla was delighted with her lapdog. Miss Davenport never seemed to run out of ways to spoil her pet, and she continued to show Lisa off with all of the enthusiasm of the owner of a new dog. Lisa was still uneasy at times about being put on display, but she took comfort in knowing that it was just one more sign of her mistress's affection for her.
Lisa even began to enjoy some of her visits, depending on the circumstances. She still wasn't a fan of being seen by strangers, but Miss's friends were a different matter. By now, Lisa had been introduced to most of the small group of people that Miss Davenport genuinely liked, if you could call wagging your tail an introduction, and she knew that she had nothing to worry about.
In fact, her mistress's friends were all quite fond of her. Master Stephen always seemed to have some of Lisa's favorite truffles close at hand, and another of Miss's friends, a woman named Vanessa, even purchased a heated blanket and dog bowl for when they visited her. Lisa may have lost her dignity, but she couldn't deny that she was a far more popular dinner guest as a dog than she had been as a stockbroker.
Miss Davenport loved to show people her lapdog so much that eventually, after Lisa had become more accustomed to visiting, she began to take her pet with her to some of her business meetings. These occasions were always hard on Lisa. The offices that they went to, which in her former job would have seemed commonplace, were now forbidding. They reminded Lisa too much of her old life, and they were full of successful businesswomen who reminded her too much of her old self. Everyone stared at her. It was undoubtedly the first time that any of them had seen a girl dressed like a slutty poodle. But it wasn't the first time that they had seen a slavegirl, which did make things a little bit easier.
Personal slaves were very much a luxury commodity, but Miss Davenport's wealthy contacts were the sort of people who could afford them. Occasionally, Lisa would even see another slave at the meetings that they went to. Usually they were personal assistants, pleasure slaves, or, more often than not, a mixture of the two. Of course, none of their owners had dyed them pink and turned them into a dog, but Lisa still felt more comfortable at the meetings where she wasn't the only slavegirl present.
Miss Davenport also did her part to make things easier on her lapdog. Prior to leaving for a meeting, Mistress would caress her and brush her, while whispering nice things in her ear about what a pretty poodle she was. During the meeting, Lisa would sit on the floor next to her owner so that she could be petted. As always, Lisa enjoyed the attention, but it also gave her a sense of reassurance. The touch of Miss Davenport's hand was a tactile reminder that she was with her mistress, and Mistress meant safety and pleasure and all good things.
Even so, these meetings were still something of a trial. However, one day something happened that made Lisa feel much better about attending business functions with her mistress. Miss Davenport was attending a high-level shareholder's meeting for a company that she had stock in. Lisa meekly followed the pull of her leash as she was led through the firm's offices on their way to the boardroom. She stared down at the floor and tried not to dwell on what the people they passed must be thinking as they saw a pink girl with paws and a tail trotting behind her owner, her breasts bouncing up and down as she walked.
Lisa and her mistress took their places at the conference table; Miss Davenport in a comfortable leather chair, and Lisa by her side on the thick carpet. Lisa felt thoroughly out of place. She was painfully aware that she didn't belong at this or any other meeting. The men and women, all of whom were dressed in expensive suits, sat around the boardroom table and spoke confidently as they discussed the business at hand. Meanwhile, Lisa, nothing more than her mistress's accessory, sat on the floor with her voice switched off so that she wouldn't disturb anyone important.
She consoled herself with the knowledge that at least this time she wasn't the only slavegirl at the meeting. On the other side of the room was a tall, pretty Asian woman in an extremely revealing secretary outfit. The tight skirt that she was squeezed into was so short that the bottoms of her ass cheeks were visible. A fine chain leash went up between her long legs, and Lisa could guess what it was attached to. The other end of the leash was held by a sour-faced blonde who looked like she never smiled. Lisa tried to catch her fellow slave's eye, but she was preoccupied with waiting on her mistress.
Lisa didn't pay attention to what the meeting was about. She had gotten good at not listening to that kind of thing. Paying attention to business discussions only made her think about the person that she had once been and was no longer, and those weren't nice thoughts to have. It was far better to focus on more pleasant subjects, like where her mistress was going to take her for lunch afterwards, or memories of her last visit with Deborah and Michelle, or how beautiful Miss looked today. It was like a kind of aversion therapy. Thinking like a businesswoman made Lisa feel bad about herself, so over time she had stopped doing it.
By now, the impulse had become automatic, to the point where she couldn't concentrate on a conversation about finance even if she wanted to. On the rare occasion that she tried, her mind soon wandered towards thoughts of her mistress, and of her next orgasm. But although Lisa didn't know what the meeting was about, it was obvious that it wasn't going well. Voices were raised, and Miss had that neutral expression on her face that she got when she was annoyed but didn't want to show it.
In spite of her skill at enforcing her own ignorance, as the proceedings continued, Lisa began to feel even worse about how out of place she was. Her fellow slave was spending the meeting frantically scribbling down notes for her mistress. The secretary didn't look like she was enjoying herself at all, but at least she had a reason for being there. However, as the meeting grew more and more tense, something that Miss Davenport had once told Lisa popped into her head.
I do the thinking. You just sit there like a good girl and cheer me up.
Without making a sound, Lisa crawled a little closer to her mistress and nuzzled her leg. Just to remind Miss that her pet was there, for whenever she wanted her. As Miss Davenport listened to one of the other board members, she began to stroke Lisa on the head. Lisa submitted to her mistress's touch with a smile. She felt the tenseness in Miss's hand...and she felt it diminish the longer Miss Davenport ran her fingers through her pet's fur. Carla leaned back in her chair and returned her attention to the meeting with the hint of a smile on her face.
It was a very small thing for Miss Davenport. But to Lisa, it was a triumph. She had proven to herself that she
did
belong at that meeting. Lisa was there to put a smile on her mistress's face, and to help her to de-stress from the pressures of work. It made Lisa feel like she was part of the team, that even though she might just be a silly pink pet, she was able to help her owner in her own small way. Lisa still often felt uncomfortable in the offices that they visited. But from then on, she was sure of one thing: in the home or in the office, her place was at her mistress's side.
Of course, these outings were the exception, not the rule. Their occasional visits aside, Miss wasn't a particularly sociable person, and as a result Lisa could usually be found at home with her mistress. Lisa found that her life with Miss seemed to get better and better with each passing day. Time was one reason.
There were only so many hours in the day, and at first, Miss Davenport had had to spend much of her time turning Lisa into her lapdog. However, as Lisa became ever more doglike, her mistress was able to spend less time creating her pet, and more time
enjoying
