Set sometime in the middle of book one.
Ha. I own nothing.
Rangers are notoriously light sleepers.
It's not something commonly known – so, really, it's only notorious between Rangers, though it makes enough sense. They are a jumpy breed; difference of age and wisdom separate the younger rangers from the seasond's ability to find repose. Exposure, and experience, reveals the origin of any given bump in the night.
Responsibility and a restless mind, however, can be anyone's excuse. This night, it had been young Will's.
Sometime, during the wee hours of the current morning, the young apprentice had wandered aimlessly around the outside of his mentor's cabin. His temples burned furiously from exhaustion, but his mind had continued to wind onward, with the weight of a few week's training now dragging him through his current bout of sleep deprivation.
He'd strolled almost silently towards the stable lean-to near the cabin, expecting the shaggy horses to be fast asleep – however, as he would soon learn, ranger horses were as jumpy as their masters. Will had nearly leaped out of his skin as his new companion, Tug, nickered a greeting and Abelard had wandered towards him.
Tug followed suit. Will had reached out his hand, and placed it on the young pony's almost velvet-like nose. A strange comfort had flowed through him, and he breathed out a sigh.
You should be asleep.
Will looked the two ponies in the face. In his current exhaustive state, he'd decided not to fight with himself concerning whether or not to question his sanity when he'd thought he'd heard a horse talk to him. He simply replied, "I should. But I can't sleep."
Well, why not?
Will chewed on his bottom lip for a moment. Sighing, he began to stroke Tug's mane. "I guess I'm afraid."
Of what?
The question of his sanity had come up again. But he'd continued. "Failure."
In response, Tug had neighed quietly and shook his neck, causing Will to back peddle away. Abelard drew closer and nudged Will on his side, nearly knocking him over. "H-hey! Abela-"
He says to trust his Ranger.
"Huh?"
Trust Halt. He knows what he's doing. He'll make sure that you'll have the skills to succeed. Besides, how does worrying help?
Will had looked strangely at his horse, out of the corners of his eyes. He was pretty smart… for a horse.
I am. And I expect an apple as payment tomorrow for my counseling services.
Will's jaw dropped. "I didn't even say anything that time!"
Tug had nickered – his way of laughing, it seemed. You don't have to.
Will had wandered back into the cabin almost an hour later. He'd slipped in the back door, padded as silently as he could, and fell back into his bed. A dreamless sleep had come soon after.
But what he hadn't known, nor sensed, was the slight movement in the kitchen shadows – Halt had been watching, and listening, partly concerned by his apprentice's sleeplessness.
But, mostly because to him, Will had sounded like a heard of wild elephants escaping his bedroom earlier that night and the horses' greetings certainly didn't help in the matter. Rangers are notoriously light sleepers.