A young woman in armor walked down a dirt path. Following close behind her was a shaggy donkey, several bags of coin and plunder belted to his saddle.
“With your muscles, Audrey, I don’t see why I needed to turn into a packmule,” the equine muttered. Mika was a wizard’s apprentice. His master had sent him, and the mercenary Audrey, abroad to collect archaeological pieces.
“Its about the only spell of yours that works, Mika!” the warrior woman grinned. Audrey refused to do anything that didn’t involve cracking skulls.
“Really? You guzzled those poultices of giant strength readily enough. And the bust enla-“
“Keep that up and I won’t feed you the antidote.” Audrey slapped the donkey on the rump. The apprentice-wizard brayed in surprise.
The pair trudged along the road in silence. Mika wished he had a wagon and a book to read. Being a draft animal was dull work. The boy-turned-donkey picked up the pace as a village appeared in the distance.
As they neared the tiny hamlet Mika trotted behind a hedge with Audrey close behind. The swordswoman unloaded the valuables from his back, unstrapped the saddle, and sprinkled a droplet of a milky-white potion onto Mika’s outstretched tongue. He felt a tingle as his shaggy fur and long ears receded. His bones cracked. Feeling returned to his hooves as they became hands. In a few moments he was a scrawny, but handsome, young man. With a blush, Mika covered himself and got dressed. The pair walked up the dirt road toward the local inn.