Return to Youth

Fred frowned, still deeply confused by her situation. While she had kept her sanity, twelve years as a fish in a very small pond had taken their toll on her motor skills, as well as her ability to form words. Trying to speak, she found herself only able to make nonsensical noises with her voice while her mouth opened and shut like that of a fish.

In this state, she stood helpless as Marcelina’s chanting surrounded her and the runes began to glow. A pleasant warmth wrapped around her, easing her tension and causing her troubled thoughts to scatter again. Time seemed to reverse itself as she grew younger, though she hardly noticed. What was one unfamiliar body compared to another?

At last, Marcelina stopped, and the glow around her died down. “There, that should do it. Come along, now. We need to get you dressed before I return you to your father.”

Again, Fred let herself be led by the hand out of the circle and into the next room where clothes had been laid out, a simple dress, some undergarments, and shoes. As the woman turned away to pick up the first articles of clothing, Fred finally glanced down at her own body. With effort, she managed to let out an inquisitive whimper.

Marcelina looked over and deduced Fred’s unspoken question. “Oh, don’t worry. I simply made you-”

1. “-six years old, the age you were when you vanished.”
2. “-eighteen years old, the age you would have been by now.”

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