AN/ This is the first story I wrote about anything so if you want to see more of it then review. This is after the inn fire but before Will gets his apprentice.

Chapter One

The Beginning

" Jacob get up and go get some water !" yelled Jenny, his mom.

Jacob got when he got up his dog Rover met him with enthusiasm. Carrying the two pound bucket up and down a hill. A shaggy horse is coming up the road with a longbow. Jacob drops the bucket and runs to grab his dagger to protect his mother. His mother comes running out when she hears the commotion. She starts laughing when she sees the hooded figure and says

" Hey Will what does the ranger life bring today?"

Will drops his hood with a huge grin " I could have been Halt you know" he says.

" Well I do know that Halt would never ride Tug" said Jenny.

" Jacob go and get some water now that we know we aren't in danger" .

Jacob groans and picks up the bucket with Rover at his heels. When he gets back he finds them already in the house laughing about the old days. he asks

" What are you guys laughing about?".

" We are just talking about the days when we were young, and fit enough to move agilely, " says Jenny. They continue talking Jacob learns things like his mother was an orphan, she was skinny for a while, and that she used to be a world famous chef. When the subjects turns to Alyss, Will's sweet love. There is a tears running down Will's cheek, but Will will never say anything because he feels guilty for how she disappeared even if everyone but Halt and Pauline, didn't believe him.

"Well now it is time for us to get down to the reason I came here" But Jenny beats him to the punch as she says

" Yes he will happily serve under you as an apprentice,"

Jacob jolts up and says

" Why don't I get to choose what I want to do?"

"Well maybe you would but you can't stop talking about how you want to be a ranger," she says. Jacob has to admit he does want to train as a ranger. So he reluctantly agrees that in five days he will come with Will to learn to become a ranger. During the week Jacob became very popular since he would be training with the best ranger there is besides Halt of course.

When the week ended Jenny threw a going away party. When Will got there the inn was full Will frowned at this, he just wanted a to get Jacob and leave he hated being center of attention since Alyss died. He just have to use his ranger skills to sneak in there and tell Jenny that she would have to continue the party without Jacob and him.

Ten Minutes Later

Will and Jacob were on the way out of the small fishing village where Jacob grew up.

" Jacob one last look and you probably will never see this place okay?" Will stated.

As they ride through the countryside someone shoots an arrow at Will but Jacob quickly push Will out of the way.

"Hey what was that for!" shouted Will.

He turns around and sees that his companion has an arrow sticking in his collarbone and is mostly unconscious.

"Jacob don't move" …. But Jacob interrupts him.

"Really and why would I move with an arrow stuck in me!" Jacob's voice full of sarcasm,"

"Well sorry maybe I WILL HAVE SOMEONE ELSE HELP YO ... Will shouted with sarcasm but Jacob interrupts Will

" Okay I'm sorry about that but you might want to turn around because the guy who shot it is behind you," Jacob said quickly

Will spun around dagger drawn and swung it in a wide arc clipping the man on his sword hand making him drop the sword. When the sword hit the ground Will kicked it to the side and the flat side of the blade against him and asks.

" Who are you, what do you want, is the arrow poisoned?"

He starts to speak when a dog jumps and attacks. The man trys to move but with Wills iron grip is unbreakable. Rover hits his mark, the man's shoulder. The man falls to the ground with a look of terror on his face.

" Okay but call off the mangy mutt please,"

" He's not a mutt,"

" Now Jacob it is not the time to fight over Rover, call him off so we can get answers," said a rather annoyed Will, Jacob called him off.

" Okay I was paid to come and kill the Ranger who served with Ranger Halt in Redmont fief. I only got paid 100 gold so come sir I didn't mean it," the man said.

"Well that was no reason to call Rover a mutt now was it?" Jacob inqueird.

The man went limp with disbelief he came here to kill a King Duncan's finest ranger since Halt, but he was concerned about the mangy mutt. Will caught the man's movement. He went back to terror after only for a second of disbelief

" He thinks he's going to live now does he" Will thinks.

Will brought back the dagger and brought the edge of the blade to the man's throat getting ready to end a man who could have been part of the taking of his Alyss.

Jacob who saw what was coming took the knife out of his hand and grabbed Will by the cloak and said

" Just because Alyss died and you want to kill the one responsible for it believe me I know how you feel it won't help bring her back and I know she wouldn't want you live like this," Jacob says quietly. He keeps one eye on Will and one eye on the stranger.

" Will go stand by Tug and I'll take care of this sad excuse of a man okay?"

" Yea," Will agrees.

Jacob then releases the firm hold on the ranger and thought to himself that if Will wanted to he would have broke through the grip. He figured something fishy was going on and it wasn't the fishing village. Jacob moved to the man and asked

" What is your name and don't try to lie to me or this dagger will cut off your hand am I understood?"

" Yes my name is you can stick it to your donkey butt," the man said.

" Ah this man thought I was joking does he" Jacob moved so quick the man thought he was drunk but when a gut punch and knife to throat he decided the young man wasn't playing. " My name is Jarod okay just don't kill me!" the man exclaimed. Jarod let the terror in his body take over. Jarod told Will and his companion anything he could think of. Will put hogtied Jarod to his horse and they started off to Redmont Castle.

When they got to Castle Redmont they dismounted from their horses and walked the man into the baron's study.

" This man attacked me and my apprentice on our way back here to Redmont fief," Will stated in a cool tone that made it clear that it happened more often than not.

" Well lets see what do you about him?" queried the baron.

" He was sent by the bandits that took Alyss and burned my cabin down, and thank you for giving me supplies to rebuild it Arload," Will said.

" No problem you need a place to stay and I need a ranger that doesn't scare the daylights out of everybody like Halt,"

" Where Halt right now,"

" He is giving a debriefing to King Duncan and won't be back until next sundown,"

Will thought that was weird because it was his turn to report to Duncan and Halt was supposed to watch the fief while he told Duncan that he was going to leave service till he found Alyss. That was why it was weird for him to get an apprentice, but since Halt needed someone to help him cover Redmont then okay.

" Take Jacob and go back to the cabin, Settle down for a bit and I will let you know when Halt is back," the baron said.

Will turned and started walking down the corridor when Jacob asked.

" How does he know my name when I have never met him?"

" He knows because I told him who you were and because he knows your mother on a personal level," Will said.