'When I was about three an old man arrived at our house, and
begged my nurse to let him come in and rest, as he could walk no
longer. She saw that he was very ill, so put him to bed and took
such care of him that by and bye he was as strong as ever. In
gratitude for her goodness to him, he told her that he was a
wizard and could give her anything she chose to ask for, except
life or death, so she answered that what she longed for most in
the world was that my wrinkled skin should disappear, and that I
should regain the beauty with which I was born. To this he
replied that as my misfortune resulted from a spell, this was
rather difficult, but he would do his best, and at any rate he
could promise that before my fifteenth birthday I should be freed
from the enchantment if I could get a man who would swear to
marry me as I was.

'As you may suppose, this was not easy, as my ugliness was such
that no one would look at me a second time. My nurse and I were
almost in despair, as my fifteenth birthday was drawing near, and
I had never so much as spoken to a man. At last we received a
visit from the wizard, who told us what had happened at court,
and your story, bidding me to put myself in your way when you had
lost all hope, and offer to save you if you would consent to
marry me.

'That is my history, and now you must beg the king to send
messengers at once to Granada, to inform my father of our
marriage, and I think,' she added with a smile, 'that he will not
refuse us his blessing.'