There was no denying that the sorceress was beautiful. Her long, dark hair glistened in the sun. Her blue dress swirled as she walked, and the stone set in the silver ring on her finger reflected the green in her eyes. Even when lifting a terrible curse, as she had just done for the miller's family, even when casting a spell to drive away monsters that attacked in the night, her graceful movements never wavered. She was admired, envied, feared and resented in almost equal measure by the townspeople. But they needed her, of that there was now doubt.

Returning home, the sorceress stepped out of the dress and out of the young body. Now people would need consoling. She put on the body of the kindly old wise woman, known locally as the sorceress’s grandmother. She took a deep breath, tested the old voice, and stepped out the back door.

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