A/N: Has anyone else been cursing Katy Perry for her new song? Teenage Dream absolutely refuses to leave my head. If you cut off the top of my scalp, you'd see the lyrics branded into the synapses of my brain.

Anyway, enjoy the read. Leave comments, suggestions, questions, ect.

~H~


Chapter 2

The Ranger

The Ranger of Meric Fief was well known for his sense of humor and friendly demeanor, but those traits didn't mean the oddly tall Ranger went easy on law breakers. Gilan was a tough Ranger, an integral member of the Corps., and the undisputed best unseen mover the kingdom had ever seen. Even his mare was said to move with the ease of a shadow.

All those things added to the young Ranger's status to make him one of the best around, up at the top with Will Treaty and his old mentor, Halt O'Carrick.

Now, as Gilan saddled Blaze, his mare, he had a strange sense about him, as if something was amiss, but he wasn't quite sure what it was. Blaze bumped her nose against his shoulder in question. He smiled at the horse and shrugged, giving her a pat on the neck. "I don't know what's gotten into me." he explained to her. "You know as much as I do."

The horse shook her mane with a snort, as if to say Just get on with it and let's go. Gilan laughed at himself; he'd begun to assume everything his mare did had a worded meaning and he'd been talking to her more than he thought was healthy. But, as he kept reminding himself, Ranger horses were bred to be smart. Who's to say they couldn't understand when some lonely Ranger started chatting with them?

Gilan pulled himself easily into the saddle, adjusted his scabbard, and settled his longbow across his knees comfortably before he tapped Blaze with a heel to get her going in the direction he wanted. In response to his antsy mood, he'd decided to check the northern path leading into Meric. Often bandits hid around one of the bends in the trail and attacked unsuspecting travelers on their way in. He'd been trying to deal with them, but every time he went out after someone reported an attack, it was too late; the bandits had already made off with their loot and were long gone.

The Ranger patted Blaze's neck lightly in time with her pace and she gave a low rumble of warning in her chest. Instantly, he was on alert, but to anyone watching, he'd appear the same. A Ranger was trained never to look like he was watching for or suspecting danger.

They were just near Bandit's Bend, as this part of the road had come to be called. Maybe this was the time Gilan would catch the annoying foresters. That was when he heard the shout.

"Leave off!" A distinctly female voice yelled. There was the scuffling sound of boots in the dirt as a scuffle ensued, then another shout. "I said, leave off!" After which there was a cry of pain.

Gilan urged Blaze 'round the bend at a gallop to see a small form in a cloak fighting off a single enemy while the other lay in the dirt behind his companion, holding his leg in a way that clearly proclaimed he'd been stabbed by one of the twin daggers in the girl's nimble hands. The Ranger jumped from the saddle, drew his longbow and aimed at the attacker.

"Not another move or you'll have an arrow through your foot." he said in a pleasant voice. Both the girl and the attacker stopped, but while the girl was unconcerned, the bandit geld up his hands in surrender. His partner cried out in fear as he saw the Ranger.

The girl threw back her hood and Gilan realized she was no girl at all, but a woman in every right. She made a face and complained: "I had these two idiots handled. You didn't need to step in, sir." As she spoke, she stowed her daggers back in her boots and Gilan noticed the bow on her back, wondering if she was as good a shot as she was with her knives.

The Ranger, not taking his eyes from the bandits, spoke calmly to the woman. "I'll admit it sure looked like you did, but, you see, it's my job to 'step in' on these kinds of things."

The woman seemed to realize something just then and, with a small intake of breath, she asked "You're a Ranger?"

Gilan nodded to this. "Ranger Gilan of Meric Fief." He introduced himself. "Now, please come here so I can finish what you started here."

The woman complied with a nod, making Gilan wonder why she seemed so calm about him being a Ranger, whereas most people seemed to think that they were sorcerers or magicians or whatever else it was these days. People feared their mystique and distance, assuming they dabbled in the black arts because of their silent movement and exceeding talents with their bows.

The woman bounced on the balls of her feet at Gilan's side. "Are you sure you won't let me finish it?" She asked seriously. A scrappy one, Gilan thought. "I was enjoying myself a with the exercise."

Gilan shook his head, hiding a smile. "No, I'll take this pair back to Meric and toss 'em in the keep for now. They've been causing a fair amount of annoyance as of late." He looked from the bandits to the woman for the first time to see bright green eyes calculating as she watching him. She'd pulled back her cloak fully and now he could see the long, nutmeg brown hair pulled back from her face in a leather cord.

Her shoulders sagged regretfully and she sighed, accepting her fight was over. "Fine. I hope you don't mind if I come with you, though. I was heading in anyway and I'm hoping maybe you can point out a decent place to stay for the night."

Gilan shrugged now. "I don't mind a bit. Since you seem to know what you're doing, how about you help me tie their hands and we'll take them in and I can show you to the inn?" He offered. He wanted to see if the woman really was as casual as she seemed about being in the company of a Ranger.

"Perfect." She said. The girl gestured over to the bandits. "Shall we, then?"

Gilan couldn't help but let a small grin show on his face. He nodded. "Let's." he said.

After the business of the two idiots who had dared to attack me out in the woods was well taken care of, I found myself walking through Meric Fief in the company of the Ranger. He was tall, from what I'd seen of Rangers in my time spent wandering. And less reserved by far than most of his fellows. The few people in the streets waved or called a hello to him, whereas I'd seen people duck for cover or look away at nothing important to avoid the gaze of a Ranger. I'd never met one myself, but they'd never seemed to be as. . .as malevolent as people seemed to think. The rumors of sorcery and dark magic appeared to be nothing in the company of this Ranger.

I looked at him, walking beside me and leading his lovely bay mare. "I didn't catch your name, Ranger." I said to him. "I'm called Rowan, myself." I introduced myself.

The Ranger smiled slightly and turned to look down at me. "I'm called Gilan. Nice to meet you, ma'am." He said politely. He turned his head to look in front of him again, then, seeming to remember something, he spoke again. "You have quite a talent with those daggers of yours." He said thoughtfully. "I noticed you carry a bow as well. From one archer to another, how good a shot are you?" Gilan asked, really looking interested by my answer.

I considered this, lifting the shoulder my bow hung from slightly as I answered. "I'm nowhere near as good as a Ranger, but better than most." I said honestly.

The Ranger laughed quietly. "You're not being modest, are you?" He asked me.

I shook my head, my long ponytail hitting the backs of my arms. "Not at all. Modesty are for those who do not think they are good at what they do." I said, remembering the words of an old friend, the same friend who'd taught me to use a bow. I grinned. "I am not one of those people."

Gilan nodded thoughtfully and we settled into silence. Comfortable silence, as there was nothing more to be said at the time.

After we walked for another few minutes, the Ranger spoke. "Well, here's the inn. You can go on inside and Harris, the innkeeper, will give you a nice room. There's not many travelers in Meric at the time." He paused and I was about to say goodbye, when Gilan decided he had more to say. "If you're going to be around for a while, Rowan. . . I. . . I'd like to see you shoot sometime, if that's alright with you." He said, looking at the ground. If I didn't know better, I could've sworn his cheeks were flushed just a bit in the dark.

Surprised at the offer, I took in a quick breath before my answer. "I don't know how long I'll be around, but I'd like that. Maybe you could give me a few pointers?" I suggested, accepting the offer.

Gilan nodded. "I could do that."

"Great." I smiled up at the tall Ranger. "How about I come out tomorrow morning?"

He nodded again. "That'd be nice. I've got no plans. My cabin's out near the southern road. I'm sure you can find it."

"No problem." I said. "Goodbye until then, Ranger Gilan." I said, then, hearing his quite reply, I walked into the inn and was shown to a room by a girl I assumed to be the innkeeper's daughter and made myself comfortable. I was practically buzzing from the excitement of the day, but I forced myself to sleep after a while, anticipating the next morning's goings-on.

Gilan walked back to his cabin, still leading Blaze, grinning a small grin. He found he was looking forward to the next morning greatly, though he wasn't sure if it was because he'd have company for the first time in a very long time, or that it was because this Rowan was not only a good fighter, but very beautiful as well. The young Ranger hadn't been in a woman's company in some time, and that made him slightly nervous, but did nothing to dull his excitement.

He slipped through town and back to his cabin silently, all the while thinking of how Rowan's green eyes had shined when he'd asked about her skill with a bow. He was sure she was far better than the norm, by the way she carried herself. Gilan could always tell a good archer of swordsman when he saw one.

The Ranger unsaddled his horse and turned in for the night, the beginnings of an idea forming in his head.