Thwap!
The arrow hit its mark. He'd been practicing the basics of shooting from farther distances until he could hit the target perfectly. His arrows were balanced and his bow was strung, and he was shooting from 200 meters at an average-sized target. He took one step back, drew another arrow and nocked it, drew back the string and let it go.
Thwap!
Struck again. He wiped the sweat from his brow and walked to the target. He marked the points where the arrows had struck the circular wooden target, and walked into the woods he had come to know so well. During his stay with Halt, Will had learned the basics of shooting and the more advanced skills of hand-to-hand combat. Now he was to be given his own fief in six months time. In the meantime, he had been given a cottage of his own in the shadow of Castle Araluen, to await knowledge of which fief he would be given to. He would also enjoy the occasional company of old friends or his former master, although that was more rare than not.
Every few weeks or so, he was visited by Evanlyn because she had become a dear friend to Will. Also, there was Alyss, who was also a very close friend, but could only visit on errands to or through the capital. There was also Horace who, after becoming Evanlyn's knight, would visit almost as often as her. Those were the only people who he wouldn't be quite surprised to see, and he didn't mind it, except he wished his master would learn to come by a little more often. However, he thought, maybe his master wanted him to learn to be on his own, and Will thought he was ready.
He exited the forest area to end up in a small clearing with a cottage pushed towards the farther end. He looked to see smoke billowing from the chimney. This however, was not a surprise to him, due to the fact that once a day a servant-woman would be sent to prepare a pot of warm soup or stew. He strode across the clearing and went inside, feeling the cool of the two-room cottage. What he hadn't been expecting the figure to be hiding, knife drawn, in the corner of the room, waiting for the ranger to come home.