Disclaimer: I do not own Ranger's Apprentice or any of its characters

Crowley entered the room to find Halt staring blankly at the ceiling. Halt absently glanced at Crowley but otherwise remained silent and still. He looked a significant amount better than he had in a while. Though his eyes were slightly bloodshot and he looked like he had just gotten out of bed. The cut he had suffered in the skirmish with Conlan was bandaged and didn't seem like it was major.

"What do you want?" Halt asked in a neutral tone. Crowley was a bit confused; Lucas had made it seem that Halt was aggravated when it seemed the Ranger was almost the opposite. Though it did sound like he was in an odd mood for Halt.

"To talk to you, preferably without you getting angry," Crowley answered and tried for a smile but found it forced. Halt glared at him.

"There's not much I can do if I do get angry," he said a bit annoyed. Crowley, for the first time, noticed Halt was bound by his wrists, ankles and neck to the cot.

"Halt, you need to stay. And stay willingly if you're going to get better," Crowley said, taking a seat beside his friend. There was no reason to go about and lay it gently. It all added up the same to Halt.

"No," Halt replied predictably. "I'm fine."

"Fine isn't hallucinating, fine isn't throwing up every five minutes and fine most definitely is not trying to distance yourself from everybody," Crowley said heatedly, partly due to his tiredness and partly because he was sick of Halt staying like this. "Tell me; tell me why you are so bent on staying a drunk. Five years ago you couldn't stand drunks. If you had it your way, all of them would have a knife through them. So tell me what changed Halt," Crowley demanded. Halt simply looked at him for a moment. There wasn't any anger in his eyes though.

"Everything," Halt answered and looked back up at the ceiling. He could think clearly now and his headache was dulled somewhat. Along with that, his stomach was finally settled and he didn't have the sense of fear and death lingering over him. Thinking back, it was hard to recall something that hadn't changed. "Conlan ran off, Will died, I gave up, and Pauline left." Halt huffed in an amused way and gave a grim smirk. "Hell, I'm not even a Ranger anymore, just a drunk with a title. It's hard to see something that didn't change," Halt said. Crowley could have sworn the man seemed depressed and was a bit surprised by the response. If anything, he'd expected Halt to start threatening him to leave. Anger now gone, Crowley thought for a moment. To busy himself so he could think of a response, Crowley drew his saxe and cut the bonds holding Halt. It didn't seem right to have him tied up like that. When it was done, Halt pretended not to notice.

"Then why don't you try to make it better Halt?"

"Because I can remember everything I've made happen and everything that has changed. You don't know what it feels like to remember things like that," Halt said with a hardened voice.

"I've lived through it all as well Halt. Conlan leaving didn't impact me nearly as much as it did you but the loss of Will hit everybody like a boulder. We may not have gone through everything you did but we were forced to watch what you did to yourself," Crowley answered after a pause. "What we don't get is why you aren't even trying."

"I'm not staying here," Halt answered after a pause. "Not when I finally have Conlan back."

"Halt, he's not the same," Crowley said a little pleadingly. "He tried to kill you in the forest; he's just not him anymore." Halt's features grew angry.

"Neither am I. He's my son and I'm the reason he left. I finally have him back and I'm not going to sit here having healers force herbs down my throat," Halt replied angrily.

"Halt-"

"I'm not staying," Halt growled and sat up in his bed.

"How about this," Crowley said in a calm tone. "I'll get Lucas to let you go back to living in your apartment if I can stay with you until you're better. You'll have to take what Lucas gives me for you though," Crowley said.

"Conlan is going with me," Halt said.

"He tried to kill you Halt," Crowley said a bit incredulously. How Halt seemed to be ignoring that fact, Crowley couldn't figure out.

"No, he wouldn't do something like that," Halt said, trying to convince himself more than Crowley.

The two lapsed into silence, glaring at each other. Halt was by far the most stubborn but Crowley could hold out for a considerable time. So far Crowley couldn't put Conlan in custody or anything. Sure, he had a suspicion and it was almost plain obvious but Conlan wasn't talking and Halt seemed to be in his defense. Not only that, but Halt was found half insane and with his knife buried in Conlan's gut. And technically Crowley couldn't keep Conlan or Halt in the infirmary against their will. All in all, he was at the losing side. The only way he could get Conlan put away was if he tried to kill Halt and was found with the weapon or witnessed.

"Fine," Crowley said after a few minutes. Maybe if he just stayed by Halt's side, Conlan would simply leave or make a move that he could be arrested for.

"Halt, you're going to have to do it sometime," Crowley said. Halt sat across the table from him in a new chair that had been brought when the apartment was restored. Conlan was currently residing in the guest bedroom where he had lived as a child while Crowley took refuge on the couch. It was late morning now and Crowley had convinced Halt to drink the mixture Lucas had prepared for him.

"No, she doesn't need to know. Not now, she hates me as it is, if I tell her about Conlan, who knows what might happen," Halt responded curtly. Crowley shook his head.

"Pauline needs to know Halt," Crowley persisted.

"Why haven't you already told her then?" Halt asked irritably. Though the mixture calmed him down, his head still ached dully and his mood never improved any. Lucas had stressed the point that Halt wasn't to have coffee or alcohol which was causing him to be more cross than might be expected.

"Because he's not my son," Crowley countered. "I have to go speak with Aaron about the bandits in the forest, please just tell her. She doesn't hate you Halt, and she deserves to know," Crowley added as he stood up, not waiting for a reply from Halt. He was a bit tempted to check in on Conlan to see if the boy was up to anything but decided against it. He needed to go see Aaron about the bandits and Lucas had assured him that Troy most likely wouldn't be capable of anything. Along with that, Halt had refused to let him disturb Conlan under the excuse that he needed rest. Without seeing if Halt had anything more to say, Crowley left the apartment.

Troy stood before a plain wooden door in one of the buildings by the battleschool. Through the door was the battlemaster's quarters. After he had snuck out of Halt's apartment in the earlier hours of the morning, Troy had gathered some old clothes and gone to Wensley. Disguised as a traveler, Troy had spent his morning asking around about Jason, claiming the man to be an old friend. Apparently he was now Rodney's partner in ruling the battleschool at Redmont but Rodney had moved up to the castle with his wife. After hearing that, Troy had ditched his traveler appearance and dispatched of a knight, taking the man's armor. After requesting an audience with Jason, Troy had been directed here. With a smile worthy of a wolf, Troy knocked on the door. There was a muffled response and he opened the door, clutching the hilt of a sword at his waist. Closing the door behind him, Troy entered the small living space and fought back his desire to lop Jason's head off then and there. Jason looked up from a paper he was reading at a table in the middle of the room. The room was simple, only containing the bare necessities. Windows looking out across the battleschool grounds granted light.

"You wanted to speak to me Filmore?" Jason asked in a deep voice.

"I prefer you call me by my real name," Troy said, removing his helmet. Jason frowned a little. Then he saw Troy's eyes. "You may know me as Conlan."

Yay! Violence and possible death coming soon! Not something I should be happy for...or you...anywho, I know Halt was slightly off but please review:D