The farmer had just left, when the old woman paused scooping up the silver to ponder on his telling. "Blue eyes? Could have sworn they were brown."

She shrugged and lifted a loose board to join the fee with treasured cousins beneath the stair. A knock at the door left her breathless in the hurry to conceal her hoard.

"Who… who is it?" she wheezed. Rather than answer, the caller entered quickly and fell behind the door.

"It's about the eye drops." whispered the same maid as had visited before. "I'd put them in when the Mistress startled me. I cried out her name in fright. Now she…"

"…won't let you be." the Elder finished off, patting the young woman's knee. She had skin like a hazelnut shell, kissed by the Sun, and hair (and eyes!) like the nut itself, rich and brown. Not blue then…

The witch gazed down at the Earth, thanking the Goddess for the 'interesting times' and reassured the maid. "Well, you wanted the love of a good person, didn't you?"

Before the woman could answer, she was interrupted by another knock at the door.