"You should have had your cowl up!" Will admonished.
"That's the thing. I did, but that nanny goat pulled it off and started chewing my hair." Halt knew what the younger Ranger was about to suggest, and he knew exactly how to counter it. He had only to wait for the suggestion.
"Maybe you should have climbed a tree. Then the goat wouldn't have seen you," Will said, trying to sound like he knew better than Halt. It was an old game between them.
"Remember that time you tried to hide in a tree, Will?" Halt asked, grinning. His former apprentice turned red.
Maddie sat up straighter. She had never heard this story before. "What happened?" she asked.
"It was just after you were born. Your parents were having a party to celebrate, and Alyss, Pauline, Will, Gilan, and I were going to meet up close to the castle and ride together, but the three of us got held up." Halt gestured to Will, Gilan, and himself. "We were pretty close to the castle, taking a break. We had been riding all day. Knowing the girls were going to pass by on the path we were sitting next to, Will decided to surprise them by popping out of a tree."
At this Will's face turned even redder. Halt grinned and continued. "He climbed up a tree next to the road, and settled on a branch about six meters high. As they came around the bend, they saw Gilan and I, and waved. Will leaned forward to see them better, and―"
"All right, all right, we get the point," Will interrupted, obviously irritated. Gilan, who was enjoying himself, told him to be quiet. Maddie agreed, so Halt, chuckling, went on with the story.
"As I was saying," he said, looking sternly at Will, who refused to make eye contact. "Will leaned on a branch, thinking it was steady, and just as the girls passed under the tree, he fell out of it!" At this point Halt was wiping tears from his eyes, he was laughing so hard. Maddie took the opportunity to look at Will. He was looking the other way, but she could see that even the back of his neck was red. Halt paused for a moment to compose himself, then went on.
"When he hit the ground, Alyss and Pauline turned around, shocked. To them, he had literally fallen out of the sky. Before he woke up we brought him to the castle, so that when he opened his eyes, Alyss, Pauline, Horace, Duncan, Crowley, Gilan, and I were all looking down at him. Even Evanlyn was sitting in a chair, holding you. You should have seen his face!" Here Halt had to stop again. He was bellowing with laughter, Gilan was chuckling, and Will's face was classified as a tomato. Even Maddie was trying not to smile, thinking that sympathy was best at the moment. She put her hand on Will's arm.
"At least you weren't hurt much," she said consolingly. But Halt took away even that small comfort. "Hurt much? He was recovering from a concussion and four broken ribs for the next three weeks!" He burst out in even more laughter. At this Maddie couldn't help laughing, which made Will glare at all three of them.
"I'm sure Gilan did something like that. Why don't we hear about some stupid mistake he made?" he suggested, trying not to sound as desperate as he felt but failing miserably.
"No, there aren't any stories about Gilan. Gilan was an angel. Unlike you," Halt said with a straight face which required so much effort that he almost burst. Unfortunately for Will, this only sent the other three into peals of uncontrollable laughter. Wiping tears from her eyes, Maddie gave her mentor a hug.
"At least you know not to do that anymore." She tried again to comfort him. If it was even possible, Will looked even more uncomfortable than before. Halt got a grip on himself and was about to answer when, to his surprise, Gilan beat him to it.
"Actually, Maddie, he did do it again. At your third birthday. We were a little alarmed the first time, but when it happened again it was just funny." Maddie began to laugh, but then saw the look on Will's face and knew that if she pursued this any further, when life returned to normal and they went back to the cabin at Redmont, she would be given completely unnecessary chores for at least a month.
"All right, enough with the stories," Halt reluctantly reached for the leather folder in the saddlebag behind him. "Here's the real reason you all are graced with my presence."
At this, Will muttered something that the others decided to ignore.
Halt handed Gilan the folder. "Have you ever heard of the Red Fox Clan?"