Why Aren't I Home?
Summary:
Halt and Will investigate the reformation of The Outsiders as the cult ravages the eastern front of Hibernia once more. Follow the dynamic duo as they bring along a newcomer into their ever-present testament of strength and will. Set 5 years post-canon. A longfic/novel.
Disclaimer:
Don't take credit for Flanny's work. Ranger's Apprentice and everything in it is rightfully his (sadly).
Preface
(PLEASE READ)
The beginning of this story is a bit more insight on the 'newcomer' featured in this novel. But I can assure you, the original character is purely a deuteragonist, meaning that he/she plays an important role in accordance to the protagonist and is a main character, but isn't the sole purpose of the story.
This story is a longer fiction, and is set 5 years after the events of 'Halt's Peril'
I hope this clears everything up - if there are questions, feel free to inbox me
Enjoy!
Chapter One:
All is Well in The Life of a Ranger
In the immediate days following the ordeal in Hibernia, personal solitude seemed to be something of the past for a certain Ranger. Countless questions arose involving just about everything there was to be asked about, from the extent of the injury to a missed shot to simply "The king was your brother?" There were banquets and ceremonies to be had, of course; a facet of King Duncan's 'protocol' that was welcomed by less than welcoming arms. If there had been one sharp contrast between the efforts of Rodney's battleschool and those of the Ranger Corps, it was that protocol and chivalry was heavily emphasized in one of them. As for the other: Is there a single degree of chivalry in throwing people into moats?
In hindsight, a lot of it was a meaningless crave of information and mock empathy. The inhabitants of even a 'protocol' ridden castle are still human beneath precedents and the daily routine. Condolences were given, wishing of good health and an even greater fortune, not to mention the occasional fruit basket given by the self described rogue who compares his life's work to that of a vigilante, therefore a qualification to claim that he's been through twice as much. Nothing like self-delusion to get through the drudgeries of life.
But at the end of the day, the grizzled Ranger realized, those who's sympathy and condolences were beyond the truancy of the daily racket chose not to say it with the rest, but rather at the downtime that follows, and directly to him. And those people, in turn, were the ones who really cared for his well-being. Hell, maybe even his fortune.
Time and disinterest neutralizes a lot of things, including the incandescent buzz that had consumed the fief of Redmont. As the days passed, everything dissolved into the struggle of daily life and work, as they always do, catalyzed by the Ranger's half-hearted and vague replies to futile attempts of probing information out of him. Like a carefully selected number of forty nine others, discreetness was truly the way to go if one wants no loose ends. Therefore speaking, the accumulation of these answers, with the slightest hint of annoyance, could truly neutralize a lot of things.
Despite the seemingly cynical thoughts that encompassed the Ranger, no wrong doing has actually been done since his return to Castle Redmont, more specifically his lofty apartment in the mammoth structure's west corridor. As far as he was concerned, life was pretty good. His wonderful soul-mate did tons more than keep company. Following Pauline, his close knit group of friends provided an extra push to his moral support; contrary to popular belief, him being the primary source of advice for younger Rangers was something that sat very will within the senior Ranger's intuition.
But most of all, there was Will. Just the sheer fact that his former apprentice was alright provided an encumbering relief for Halt. Now close to a decade ago, the grizzled Ranger had agreed to another five years of training a Ranger; a five years that had its fair share of ups and downs. But overall, Will had been the pinnacle of the older Ranger's career. Although appearing cold and disinterested, Halt was extremely proud of Will's accomplishments, and even prouder of the youth's progression as a person. The adoptive father to son-like relationship was of no surprise to the common talk of Araluen, hence its commonization. However, if there was one thing he knew for a fact, it was that there was no way in hell he would have another apprentice.
Perhaps he shouldn't be so hell-bent.
It was his wife who broke the progression of his thoughts. "Halt, maybe you should take a break."
Halt looked up from the lengthy report, obviously reading none of it for the last ten minutes. "Maybe I should." He added in a nonchalant tone. "I wasn't even reading it"
Pauline replaced the now watered vase of flowers on the window ledge adjacent to a desk used for official work. Afterward, she sat beside her husband fully knowing that something wasn't right. "What's wrong, dear?"
Failing to reassure his wife, the grizzled Ranger answered hurriedly, a characteristic in him that screamed error. "Nothing."
But Pauline knew the look. It was the face of a man who was settled and content, but with no clue as to what he would do next; the face of a man who, in this case, was a little too settled. In other words, Halt was utterly bored.
"You're bored, aren't you?"
"What?"
Pauline was by no means oblivious to this. In fact, Halt's boredom has been increasing synonymously with the decrease of the popularity of the haphazard events in Hibernia. She was, however, completely clueless on how to remedy this. The diplomat had an idea, one of the subconscious sort; the type that is always met by the question as to why it was thought. But it seemed futile – that is, unless her talent of persuasion was used. She would save it for now, she concluded.
As for Halt, the Ranger knew Pauline's look of all knowing. He knew that she nailed it on the head right then and there. Now, there was no use in pretending not to comprehend her claim.
The Ranger sighed, resting the official report on his lap – Crowley's information would have to wait. He lied. "I have no idea what to do." Halt had an idea, but wasn't sure how to approach it. Besides, it seemed inconvenient at this point in time.
Pauline shrugged. "Why don't you see what Will is up to?"
A hint of a smile broke across Halt's lips as he answered. "He's here, with your apprentice."
"Former apprentice, Halt. She graduated."
Halt reiterated in a gruff tone. "Whatever. You can never keep track of them anyway."
Pauline smiled as her husband's mock exasperation. She knew that Halt was on very good terms with Alyss, the diplomat's former apprentice. She also had the vague notion that she and Halt were thinking alike on something. What it was, however, was beyond her knowledge. As a diplomat though, she was entitled to have an idea.
"Crowley's here for the next few days; surely you two could come up with something." Pauline suddenly felt like she was dealing with an adolescent child, a feeling that wasn't entirely new to her. She sensed a small bit irony in telling Will: "he isn't getting any younger."
Even worse, she felt like she and Halt were nearing closer to the idea that was mutually held. Adding fuel to the fire, she knew exactly what that was now. Meanwhile, Halt shrugged in defeat. Picking up the report once more, he couldn't help but to acknowledge the fact that Pauline was avoiding something. He had a strong notion that it was exactly what Halt had been keeping from her. But as long as it went unsaid, Halt, in turn, would say nothing about it.
The subject of Crowley's letter read: "Top Prospects". Halt cursed silently to himself.
As the popularity of the Ranger Corps grew thanks to the efforts of Halt and Will, so did the air of suspicion the close knit group had on the people of Araluen. They weren't sure what Rangers did, and all they knew was that their work was effective, and it involved a bow. Crowley used this opportunity to seek possible talents, as the interest trickled down to the adolescent generation of the country. Of course, because the sandy haired Ranger couldn't visit all fifty fiefs while keeping up with his duties as commandant, he relied on the word of other Rangers regarding prospects in fiefs far from Araluen. And now, Halt's comrade was in Redmont.
The Ranger read the briefing introduction, incoherently fingering his beard as he did so:
Welcome, Rangers
It is of my pleasure to bring you the annual 'Top Prospect' listings. In this, you will find fifty of the country's potential talents, as well as their assets and weaknesses. You will also find the Ranger who assessed each subject. Each subject is ranked according to skill level. Dashes between fiefs indicate subject availability for more than one fief. If you happen to be interested in anyone on this list, send a notification to me, or speak to me directly, if the location ensues.
Halt paused before reading on. He had to think: he was becoming awfully interested in this listing. Could he possibly be thinking – no, it seemed too foolish. Just a general interest, that's all. He read on, beginning with the very first subject.
1.) Andrew Shields
Location: Redmont – Araluen
Halt sighed. "Of course," he said aloud. Upon closer inspection however, his last name seemed familiar. This young man's older brother Clarke was enlisted in the Ranger Corps quite sometime ago, around a year or two before Will was taken under the grizzled Ranger's wing. Halt remembered now: Clarke had been quite the talk of the upper fiefs' Rangers during the gathering at the time. He read on.
Age: 15
Height: 1.8 m
Weight: 72.5 kg
Assets:
-Excellent speed
-Strong wit
-Smooth, clean shot
-Spot On Accuracy
Weaknesses:
-Projectable stature
-Injury trouble
Assessment: Crowley Meratyn
-Drew is a can't-miss prospect. The younger brother of Clarke Shields, Ranger no. 46, Drew has a predictable frame. This subject possesses an above average shot and a quick wit with Next-level accuracy and athletic movements that equal some third-year apprentices. However, injury troubles and family issues surround the subject, as well as lofty expectations.
Halt dialed in on 'family issues' and 'lofty expectations'. He could see one side of the issue, as Clarke had been highly revered on his smooth and athletic movements as well as his deadly accuracy. A relative of such hype was doomed for high expectations. Clarke was bigger in height and stature, however, therefore causing unseen movement to be an issue in the early years of his apprenticeship. Looking the height column for Andrew, he seems to be taking after his older brother. It could easily be fixed, Halt knew, as Gilan nearly equaled Horace in size. As for family issues: he was utterly clueless.
Likelihood of Enlistment: 10 – 10
The Ranger peered over at Pauline who sat beside him, her facial expression locked in thought. "Pauline, who is this Andrew Shields character?"
The diplomat snapped out of her trance. A couple seconds were taken to recover from the magnitude of self thought. Afterward, she answered Halt's inquiry.
"Oh, Drew? I see him around the castle sometimes. He's Lady Alexandra's son; Crowley's nephew," She answered. Seeing Halt's eyes locked on the paper that he held before him, she decided to add an inquiry of her own. "Why?"
Without warning, The Ranger rose from his seat, heading toward the small closet that where his cloak lay uninhabited. Folding the report into a travel-size half, he threw on his cloak, working out the areas that appeared wrinkled. Before Pauline could ask, Halt had an answer formulated.
"I'll be right back," he said, and like all Rangers, slipped quietly out of the room.
Pauline was baffled as to why he left so abruptly. She rose from her seat, motioned over to where three or so pages lay in Halt's previous position and retrieved them, which instantly eroded the document's exclusiveness. After reading the heading, she smiled to herself while shaking her head. It was the second thing she guessed correctly on that evening. Suddenly, the feeling that she was looking after an adolescent being returned. Only this time, she welcomed it with laughter.
Rangers were such a mysterious group.
Thanks for reading!
Please excuse any remaining grammatical or spelling errors that are in this chapter.
Review if you want too; I welcome constructive criticism as well as your thoughts on the story so far.
