Having set James safely on the table Elspeth went to fetch a small mirror to place in front of him. He wasn't sure if she incorrectly thought he would like to keep watching his journey down the evolutionary chain, if it was vanity and she wanted him to bare witness to the full extent of her magical prowess, or if she was just being cruel.
Whatever the reason, he was a captive audience now. The drop from the table surface to the hard floor below would have been the equivalent of jumping off a building if he were still human. Not long ago James had been close to escaping Elspeth's house, now he had no hope of even escaping from her kitchen table. He felt every bit as small and vulnerable as he truly was.
Before too long James felt the next wave of changes take hold. The fur which had grown over his body earlier now fell away to reveal a dry, scaly, dark green coloured skin. His body lowered enough that it almost touched the surface beneath him
as his legs became shorter and stubbier, while his torso elongated to a point where he was now unsure exactly where his lengthy tail began. Moving around felt stranger, more alien to him than ever.
James looked at the mirror sadly, thoughhe could no longer show any sign of emotion. He was a lizard. A lowly lizard. And what was worse was there was no sign of the spell finishing with him yet.