Gilan looked around cautiously, making sure he was not being followed. He couldn't risk being seen, not now that he was so close to his goal. When he saw that there was nobody following him he took one slow step forward, managing to step on a twig. In the silence of the forest it might as well have been a gunshot. Even so, the small man fifty metres in front of him did not appear to notice. Wincing at the noise, Gilan took another step forward, narrowly avoiding another dry twig. Becoming more confident he moved stealthily to the cover of another tree. He had been travelling like this for two days now, following the Ranger from his home with a small pack of provisions and his sword.

Ever since his first encounter with a Ranger it had been his dream to become part of their ranks. He had asked his father, Sir David, to go with the Ranger Halt and learn the skills of a Ranger but his father had laughed and said he would be much better suited to a knight's life. And so he had decided to go anyway and follow his dreams instead of following his father's orders. He had never been the obedient sort. So, here he was now, stalking a Ranger through the forest. He smirked as he thought about what a great job he was doing. Halt had not noticed him so he must be better at this Ranger business than he thought. It was around noon and the Ranger seemed to have stopped for a break.

Gilan approached the man in front of him slowly and cautiously. The Ranger was sitting next to a stream in the midst of the forest, eating his noon meal. Gilan was about ten metres away from him. When Gilan was right behind the man, he stood up, spun around and grabbed Gilan by the arm. Gilan, who was caught off guard by the Ranger's sudden movement, was thrown into the calm waters of the stream. Water drenched his clothes and trickled down his fair hair. Great, Gilan thought to himself, I'm wet now!

"What can I do for you, young man?" The Ranger Halt said in a calm voice.

Gilan, still staring at the Ranger in awe, stood up. "Well, I w-wanted to k-know, uhhhh, I-I wanted to know if y-you would p-possibly have me for an apprentice?" He said nervously, turning the statement into a question at the last second.

Halt stood thinking for a moment "Perhaps," he said at last, "I could use one of those. And you show some promise. Come and join me."

Gilan's eyes widened considerably at that in his shock "W-what, you don't mean to send me home? You want me to j-join you?"

"Yes, yes I would. Don't just stand there in the middle of the stream!" Halt glanced at Gilan's wet clothes meaningfully.

Gilan glanced down at his drenched clothing and sighed. It would appear that he would be spending the rest of the day in great discomfort. He stepped out of the stream and took off his boots, emptying the water from them into the stream. And they were his favourite boots too. Just my luck Gilan thought to himself bitterly. But then he thought of the fact that he had just been accepted as an apprentice to a Ranger and his mood brightened considerably. He put his boots back on his feet and stood awkwardly in front of Halt, who had returned to his seat on the forest floor.

"Sit, boy, do you not know what 'come join me' means?" Said the Ranger, raising an eyebrow.

Gilan hurriedly sat across from Halt, unsure of what he should do. So he ended up just staring at Halt, the Ranger staring back. This lasted for about ten minutes before Gilan asked what he should do.

"Eat. Or at least stop staring at me, it's beginning to get on my nerves." Halt stood up as he was finished with his break. When Gilan made no move to follow he turned around with an eyebrow raised, "Coming? Or do you no longer desire to be my apprentice?"

At that Gilan shot up off the ground and took off at a sprint to catch up to the shorter man.

When Gilan had finally caught up with Halt he was looking at the man with open curiosity. It was one of the few times he had been so close to a Ranger. The other few times, he had been with his father and thought it was quite unwise to study the Ranger with his father breathing down his neck. However, now that his father was not there, it was a different story altogether.

"Are you quite done with staring at me? I'm sure I cannot be that attractive." Halt spun around and looked at the boy with a raised eyebrow. He glanced at Gilan's still wet clothing. "And you certainly don't look too good yourself."

Gilan looked down at himself, and, realising that the Ranger was probably right, began to blush furiously. He kept his eyes downcast, staring intently at his feet.

"That's better! Just stay like that." Halt said, thankful for the boy's attention being diverted elsewhere.

Gilan, suddenly aware that he had no idea where they were headed, suddenly asked "Where are we going? And how long until we get there?"

Halt, who had been exulting in the silence, groaned softly "We are headed for Castle Redmont, and we are about two days away." He said matter-of-factly.

"And when do I we start my training?"

Halt glanced at him "When we arrive at Redmont. But first I need to know about you. What are your strengths, what are your weaknesses, what your name is, how old you are, whether or not you plan to continue training with that sword of yours. That sort of thing." As he saw Gilan's mouth open to reply, he said "No, don't tell me now. We have the whole journey to discuss this. Right now, we had better get moving."

With that, Halt turned away from the boy and continued the walk. Gilan took a deep breath and followed after him.

When they stopped for the night, Halt watched Gilan curiously. The boy had changed out of his damp clothing into dry clothes. His hair had also dried and he had tied it back from his face, a few lose strands escaping now. Admittedly, his hair was not too long, the blond strands only falling halfway to his shoulders. Though he still tied it all the same. Right now, he was staring into the depths of the fire, thinking over whether or not he had made the right decision in coming here.

"So, boy, what's your name?" asked Halt, knowing full well who it was.

Gilan looked up at the sudden sound of Halt's voice. Ha had begun to grow accustomed to the silence. "Gilan, sir. Second eldest son of Battlemaster David of Caraway Fief."

"And does your father know you're here?" Halt asked.

"No, I came without his permission. He wanted me to remain at Caraway, said that I am more suited to a knight's life."

"He really does support your decision."

"And how would you know that, sir?"

"What would you say if I told you I asked him to deny you leave as a sort of test? To see whether or not you had the guts to come after me. To see if you have what it takes to become a ranger."

"And do I? Do I have what it takes to become a Ranger?

"Well," said Halt thoughtfully, "that remains to be seen."

Author Note: Hi there! I hope you enjoyed the story. I'm unsure about whether or not I should write a series of Gilan's apprenticeship or just leave this as a one-shot. Please review and tell me what you think! :)