Just a random thing I am doing to kill time. I can not believe I actually wrote this! This applies for all of my fics… I am Australian and I use the natural slang as I was born here and lived here all my life. Please tell me if I use the slang and I will reword it. Don't read any more it is getting sloppier by the minute. So much that it is even grossing me out.

'Will is dead'

Halt and everyone around him could not believe it.

Will had been sent on a simple scouting mission into Picta. Just a simple mission to see where a group of troublesome bandits had gone. All he had to do was ride there and check up on them and ride back. He had done harder things before. Including fighting off the drug used by most Skandian slaves called warmweed.

Hearing this Alyss just stared at the messenger. He was obviously a ranger, although Alyss could sence authority and great sadness. Suddenly it hit her. She had understood before but thought it impossible.

'No, no, no!' Alyss muttered as she hit the ground sobbing. Just after she had pledged her heart to him and he to her some idiot had taken the happiness away from her.

Jenny was in shock. Here was a ranger just calmly telling her that one of her best friends had died. 'How?' she managed to crock out of her grief.

Crowley surveyed this small group of people closest to Will. Mourners. 'Will was attacked by 6 people at once. All had swords as their weapon.' Barron Alard, Sir Horace and Sir Rodney all nodded their understanding.

All Horace was able to think was something along the lines of, I should have gone with him. He was able of no other thought until he watched Alyss slowly sink to the ground in shock. Horace realised that he was not the only one affected by Will's passing.

Horace bent down and wrapped an arm around Alyss, lending what she needed most. A friend, comfort and love. Slowly raising her head Alyss sat up and leaned against Horace. Jenny bent down and started to lean against Horace as well. He wondered how Halt was coping at that point in time.

Halt stared off into the distance and he wondered what Will had done to deserve this. When he could not take it any more he collapsed into the chair someone had put behind him in a hurry. Placing his head in his hands Halt did not try and hold back the tears that flowed. He did not even try because in Halt's eyes Will deserved the tears. 'I should not be afraid to hold back the tears.' Slowly lifting his head the first people halt saw were the 2 rangers he trusted the most, Crowley and Gilan.

Seeing halt stumble backwards, Gilan was quick to place a chair under him and not long after that take one himself. Once Halt had been seen to, Gilan thought about his good times with will. Will was one of those special people who was loved by everyone who had the privilege of getting to know him.

Both Gilan and Crowley were surprised when they saw halt slowly start to lift his head up. Crowley motioned for Gilan to come around the front so that when halt's head came up totally he would see them both. Gilan and Crowley were only marginally surprised when they saw halt's old and weathered face lined with tear tracks. Looking over to Baron Arald, Crowley saw him staring through a window with an odd expression on his usually laughing face. No expression.

(From here on I wrote it at 4 o'clock in the morn. Sorry if it does not make sense or is so sloppy you can't continue. It did go through word. Please do, please!)

Barron Arald could not believe it. The small orphan boy he had first known who had a talent for picking fights with Horace had grown into a cheerful young man that had always taken a positive out look on life. Barron Arald could see that is was affecting Sir Rodney as well.

Sir Rodney was taking it hard. During the apprentice years Horace and will's relationship had been a rocky one starting with non stop fights. This all changed when will had saved Horace from a wild boar. He could just not believe it. It was not. Could not be true, right? ^ Sir Rodney caught a sight of how will's life had affected the people in that room alone. Horace, Alyss and Jenny. All lending each other friendly support. Barron Arald staring out the window. Obviously thinking about will. Last of all the 3 rangers. Silently lending support in their unique way. He was stunned to see that all the rangers had tear tracks running down their face. He had always thought of the rangers as a small group of excellent warriors. He knew that they were close but not this close. He supposed that it would take all his life to find out even a small amount of their secrets, but that was only to be expected. 'Their not afraid to show how much they miss him.' Sir Rodney realised. Will was a unique in his own way. Sir Rodney watched as Gilan collapsed into a chair for the second time that day.

Gilan had not attended a death for sometime now and he had forgotten what it was like. Heart breaking. He placed his head in his hands as he himself could not take it any more. His sobs gradually increased until he felt a familiar soothing hand start to rub his back. Halt's hand.

Suddenly a dog ran in barking, ruining the silence that had developed after those 3 words had been said. Looking around for a split second the dog barked once and run over to the silent form of Alyss.

Halt, Alyss and Horace would know that form anywhere. Where as Gilan, Crowley, Barron Arald and Sir Rodney had no clue as to whose the dog was.

A guard bust into the room. 'Sorry my lords/lady, we could not control this hound.' Then he proceeded to walk into the room to take to dog by force. 'NO!' shouted Alyss, or at least it sounded like shouting after the deathly silence that the room had held only moments before.

She ran her hand along the collar that was so familiar and that brought with it so many sore memories. Halt and Horace might have known about the dog but what they did not know about was that there was a secret leaver that opened up a small compartment, in the collar that could hold a message. During the time when either will or Alyss had been at the ranger gathering or had been sent away on a simple mission within Araluen they would write to each other. Of corse that was almost impossible to do that on other cases when either will or Alyss were sent out of the kingdom.

I am singing Hallujah at the moment and I am so killing the high notes.

Thats what I get I guess for joining choir

I live to turn authors worlds upside down

Alyss Mainwaring