Portia left Circe and her pupils studying what to do next. James was leaving her hands slimy, she always had a thing for him, he was loyal servant to Circe since what had happened to him. She remembered the first time he appeared at Circe's mansion. Portia already worked there, her mother was a witch, a Circe's friend and asked her for a job to Portia. She was young, no more than 20 years old, her mother was ashamed of her because Portia was the only one in her family who didn't show great skills with the witchcraft . Hidding her in Circe's house and making her a servant was the kind of punishment for Portia's sin. When she arrived to the house Circe had already had enough with the local bullies, some teenage minded guys were constantly egging her house and making Circe furious - her witch fame was going mouth to mouth in the city for the worst of reasons. She prepared a trap then, she stood up all night, transformed her self harpy and attacked the prepertators : three young men. The three ran in the opposite direction towards the house where Portia opened the door and let them in. Circe flew back inside the house through her room' s open window. Portia took care of the young men's cuts and scratches, she still recorded their names: Louis, Horace and James. All orphans from the city who had grown up together. Circe came down stairs and put up a theater like she had agreed with Portia, the servant explained she was only taking care of them and Circe invited them to dinner. Well, the three weren't much repented and accepted. It was at night during dinner fo course that she poured the potions on the drinks she served them. She talked to them trying to know more about their lives: Louis had run away from home due to domestic violence against his mother and brother, Horace had neglecting parents and was an alcohol consumer and James had troubled home which he was constantly avoid- not exactly an orphaned. However Circe believed that none of that explained their misbehaviour, especially against her. They were eating it with happiness, the meal was turkey and mashed potatoes with gravy, a true feast for them. Circe got up and drew her wand out. They stopped and looked at her as she started to walk past them.
"I could use an ass to help with the heavy weigths" she said and tipped Louis' head. "I need a big fat turkey by thanksgiving" she continued and tipped Horace's head. "And frog legs are always such an elegant snack" and with this she tipped James' head. None of them understood what was happening until Louis started to change, and then Horace and then James. Portia saw it all from the kitchen, she saw shocked as the three men were changing against her will,horrorized with what was happening to them. James was the only one fast enough to react. He got up, exited the dinning room in the direction of the corridor and the main door, but it was too late and he transformed into a frog half way through his way. Portia heard what would be his destiny: his head would be smashed against a table, brains and blood scatered all around, his legs cut off and cooked. The blonde girl just fell sorry for him, while Circe wasn't watching, she ran to him, picked him up and put him insied her apron's pocket.
"Where's the other one?" the sorcerer asked her.
"What did you transformed him into? Because he disappeared form thin air..." Portia said, risking herself to become a maggot or a worm. Circe shrugged her shoulders and ordered her to take care of the other two...She took the donkey to the stables, near the sty and the turkey, the trickiest one to catch was stocked in the cellar. That rainy night she put James in a shoe box, she put pierced some holes in the lid and snatched dried worms and flies form Circe's potion ingridients. He still showed human intelligence and refuse to eat the bugs in the first hour, but next morning she checked the box and they were all gone. She took the past days feeding him and taking care of him. When Circe wasn't paying attention Portia dug up a hole in the yeard letting it filled with water when the rains came. Soon James had a little pond for him. James lived weeks as a frog until the day Circe told Portia she knew what she had done.
"You were compassionate for him weren't you?" the witch asked. "I wasn't going to eat his legs anyway, just bring them all to me" Circe asked. Portia brought all the three animals to Circe. The sorcerer undid Horace's spell, he was still in shock from all his time as a turkey, when Circe said he could go away he didn't even think twice nor cared about his friedns, he stormed out of the mansion, running naked through the road.
"We'll hypnothize the police when they come and make questions" Circe said, winking her eye to Portia. Then she undid James' spell, and the frog became a man again.
"You're free to go..." said Circe. James nodded embarassed because of his nudity. "What about Louis?"
Circe was going to wave her hand but then looked at the donkey.
"Louis is much happier like this, pus I cannot have Portia do all the heavy lifting around here" Circe answered him. James didn't know what to feel, he too walked naked to the door but didn't exit, not before he turned around and thanked Portia.
Three days passed till the bell rang once again.Circe was the one to answer it. James was on the other side.
"Do you want to visit your friend young-man?" she asked him. He looked terrible, tired and uncomfortable.
"Hmmm...this is hard to say but...I have nowhere to go."
The sorcerer felt sorry for him indeed.
"I think I'm better as a frog then as a person..."
"You do make a good frog" she agreed, the sorcerer opened him the door as an invitation. " I have a squeaking floor table in the library, do you think you can fix it?"
And since that day James became Circe's handy boy, taking care of the house and animals like Portia. He never showed her more than friendship and was quick to understand the world of witches swearing not to denounce it and to protect it too. Once in a while Circe would transform him into animals. a hawk so he could hunt the mice around the house, a bull to help Louis the donkey to push heavy things, a horse to carry her through the woods sometimes and of course, secretly his favourite, a frog to hunt down the mosquitoes and bug plagues on the yard.
"You do like the pond, don't you James?" Portia asked the frog she was caring. He croaked like saying "yes".