A.N. Hey guys! So, this is my first foray into the Ranger's Apprentice series. I have read the first four books several times and just recently got through to where I am currently listening to book 10. I have always loved the entire story and world and characters, especially Will and Gilan. I will forever wonder what happened in the rest of Will's apprentice years and there are nowhere near enough stories about it and Will's trauma from Skandia. So, I decided to write a story of my own. Feel free to let me know if there are any grammatical or spelling errors, plus I tried to not use a lot of contractions as I could not remember if any were used in the books. Anyways, I hope you Read, Review and Enjoy! Also, Happy Holidays!
P.S. For any of my regular readers, I hope to have Watching the Movie- Big Hero 6 done by New Years. This was just stuck in my head and my first semester of college was crazy.
Disclaimer: I do not own Ranger's Apprentice. That honor goes to John Flannagan.
Gilan sat still on Blaze hidden in the shadows at the edge of the forest that hid the clearing used for the Gathering. He knew that he would have made it to this spot before his former mentor, Halt, and as every year before hoped to catch the older Ranger by surprise. Ever since he had graduated Gilan had loved to try to one-up his mentor partially for fun, but mostly for himself to convince himself and Halt that he is a good Ranger that can even best the one who taught him.
A silent rumbling from Blaze forced him out of his thoughts as she sensed others approaching. Gilan stayed still but watched as Halt and Abelard came into view. The problem he did not think of or realize was that he was in the wrong position to see the other shaggy horse and rider on the other side of his mentor, and the fact that his mentor had a new apprentice slipped his mind. No matter, Gilan waited approximately thirty seconds before slipping onto the road behind the two riders and with a nudge of his heels Blaze started after them easily matching the gait of the horses in front of them.
They continued on this way for a few minutes before the horses they were following changed their step, at which Gilan nudged Blaze who followed suit. Gilan knew that there was no way that Halt did not know he was being followed now, so when he heard Halt stop a moment later he stopped Blaze and slid from the saddle.
Quickly he slipped into the trees and slid from shadow to shadow seamlessly, after all, they don't say he's the best at unseen movement for nothing. A few meters ahead of where he had left Blaze he saw Halt kneeling next to Abelard, examining the ground. Gilan smiled to himself feeling in his gut that he had accomplished what he had been attempting for years, to sneak up on his mentor. After waiting for a second to be sure that Halt was not about to look up or move, Gilan slid out from between the trees and stood behind the kneeling Ranger.
"Halt, Halt," Gilan said with a smirk at his wit and the joke that never got old. His mentor rose and turned towards him and saw his former apprentice easily leaning against the longbow. Halt and Gilan started to talk with Gilan believing whole-heartedly he had accomplished his goal.
That is until Halt said, "Ah, yes...apprentices and masters. They're a strange combination, all right. But tell me Gilan, my old apprentice, aren't you forgetting something this year?" At that moment Gilan knew his mistake and the fact that his old mentor had a new apprentice made itself known in his mind. Before he could make any movement to search for the young apprentice that had to be somewhere in the surrounding forest, he felt a rush of air past his face as a dark shafted arrow streamed past his head and thunked into a tree by him. Gilan followed the shot automatically up into a tree across from him where he could make out the cloaked and crouching figure on a branch with his bow outstretched.
Gilan chuckled a little as the small figure jumped down from the tree landing lightly on the ground and smiling at the two older men. He looked vaguely familiar to him, Gilan considered as he looked the new apprentice up and down. As he compared the boy to a monkey he thought of the name that Halt had called him, Will. Gilan thought back putting the name to the face of this boy and remembered a time during his own apprenticeship. He had been at Castle Redmont for some sword training and as he walked past the ward where the Baron kept some misfortune orphans a pack of three came running out. The one in the lead was small and thin and as he watched climbed quickly up a tree across the yard with the other two, a bigger boy who looked mad, and a tall girl who walked gracefully but quickly behind the two boys. The second boy had called up at the boy in the tree angrily telling Will to get back down. Gilan scrutinized the small boy and decided two things. One, it was the same boy from the ward, and two, he was a person that Gilan could be friends with. What surprised and pleased Gilan was when the boy asked him to teach him how he moved as he did. He knew that Halt had probably told Will to be nice, but it was a kind gesture and the fact that the boy wanted to learn from him helped his bruised ego.
Turning away from the new boy he embraced Halt, a feeling he had been missing for the past year. He smiled lightly as Halt made fun of his body type and replied in kind before turning back to the boy and asking him if Halt made him do all the chores. Gilan called for Blaze and was not very surprised when Will asked about his sword, after all, he is the only one of the corps to wield one. What did surprise him was the boy's instance that you had to not get into Battle School to become a Ranger. Gilan did know that he was an oddity of sorts, but that didn't mean that he could not be offended by the suggestion. As the conversation grew Gilan grew comfortable with the younger boy and had a great time ribbing him with Halt. Soon enough the three rangers mounted their horses and set off together on the last leg of the journey to the Gathering grounds. Gilan thought this was going to be even more fun than any year before.
Of course, Gilan was proved wrong soon after they arrived to the chaos that was reigning over the group gathered. He sat with Will where he and Halt usually camped waiting for the Senior Ranger's return and information. When another ranger came over, he couldn't help but wonder why people always seemed to think that he knew something simply because Halt was his mentor, but shook it off. Gilan could tell that something was off and he did not like it one bit.
That feeling came full force as Halt relayed the news of Morgarath's seeming return along with the Kalkara. As soon as Halt started to speak of the beasts, Gilan sensed what was coming and mentally prepared himself for what he knew was going to be a hard mission. As he, Halt, and Will left to track the Kalkara, GIlan turned in his saddle slightly looking at the Gathering grounds mourning what he thought was going to be a fun and restful time with his fellow Rangers and he tried to swallow the feeling that something was going to happen before he returned here again.
A year later Gilan rode Blaze slowly into the forest for the Gathering and for once found himself dreading the coming time. It was only a few months since the end of the war, and Gilan's worst mistake, leaving Will, Horace, and Princess Cassandra, who he had thought of as Evenlyn, in Celtica. He regretted going ahead and felt that it was his fault that Will would not be at this gathering and that he and the princess were stuck in Skandia. On top of all that, there was the fact that it was only a few weeks after Halt's banishment. Gilan had to admit that the fact that Halt was only banished for a year diminished his fears, but knowing that Halt had done it to go after Will and had not allowed him to come hurt more. He knew that Halt was right when he told Gilan to stay, but Gilan still felt like he should not be here at the Gathering with his fellow Rangers but missing the two that he was closest to. He also had a feeling that the others would come to him for answers about Halt's actions. Gilan noticed that he was in the spot that just last year he had tried to surprise Halt and meet Will. He stayed still looking around him for a moment before he urged Blaze onto the clearing.
When he came into the clearing the people there seemed to be subdued and energetic at the same time. At least it was not as crazy as the previous year, he thought as he took Blaze to their usual camp spot and took care of the mare. When he rode past a group of three Rangers and they stopped talking, he just knew that they were discussing Halt, Will, or both.
While Gilan set up his camp one of the other Rangers, Timothy, came over and cleared his throat. Gilan looked up at his peer as Timothy asked the question that he knew was coming, "Do you know why Halt did it?" For a moment Gilan looked at the man and noticed the sheer amount of people who had stopped what they were doing, or quieted in order to hear his response.
Slowly he looked back down at his pack which he was situating and said softly but loud enough for anyone to hear, "He wanted… No, needed to go after Will, and he wasn't getting the permission that he wanted. All I know is that he will come back when he has Will Princess Cassandra." Gilan hoped that he had said enough to get the others off of his back. Usually, the Gathering is one thing that he adored. He loved seeing others and comparing stories, he had ever since he was an apprentice, but right now all he wanted to do was be allowed and try to not think of everything that had gone wrong because of one decision he made. Apparently his answer worked for the time being as the others went back to their own work or conversations and no one approached him for the next few hours.
Gilan was sitting at a small fire sipping a cup of coffee and watching the others move around him when Crowley came over with a stack of papers.
"Hey, Gilan," Crowley greeted him and handed him the papers as he confirmed, "These are the papers for each of the apprentices you will be grading on unseen movement." Gilan nodded his head as he flipped through the pages looking at the names.
As Crowley was walking away, Gilan froze at the name at the top of the next sheet in the stack and called out, "Crowley." The Ranger Commandant turned to the young Ranger expectantly and slowly Gilan reached out a hand to give Crowley the paper back. Crowley looked down at the paper puzzled for a second then let out a slow breath as he read the name at the top of the page, Will.
"I guess that just got stuck there. A lot of paperwork, you know. I'm sorry," Crowley said quietly as they both looked at the name wondering if the boy it belonged to would ever get to go through his assessments. Gilan smiled sadly and nodded at Crowley as he turned away to go to another fire and rummaged through the next step of papers to be sure that Will was not in any of those either. Gilan sat back and stared unfocused at the papers in his lap as he thought of the smart, vivacious young boy who was now a captive, slave, or even dead. He thought of his mentor who was looking for said boy and not here in the place that seemed to be the only time he could relax. Gilan had never been to a Gathering without Halt and he already did not like the strange feeling that had come over him. Unknown to him a few tears slid down his face and landed on the paper on top that belonged to a first-year apprentice.
The Gathering progressed as the ones before, except for last year, and had days of Gilan working with apprentices on their movement and nights of talking to his comrades about the past year and more. Every moment was different however, there were no less than three times that Gilan turned expecting Halt to be there with a snarky comeback, and every time he saw the two first year apprentices and imagined Will among the boys. Every evening he laid in his tent and thought of what he could have done differently.
If he had sent Horace ahead with the news instead of going himself, would they all be safe or would he also have been captured? Where would he be if he hadn't listened to Halt and went with him? These ideas plagued his mind as he tossed and turned late into the night before falling into a fitful sleep with tears drying on his cheeks.
The last day brought the graduation of the one fifth-year apprentice, Brenden. As Gilan watched with the others in the trees he thought back to his own graduation and how proud his mentor looked, even on the outside. His thoughts then slipped to Will and he wondered again if the younger boy would ever make it to this point or if he would even come back. If he didn't, that would be his, Gilan's fault. He listened later as the scores of the other apprentices were announced and the new ones given their bronze oak leaves and welcomed to the corps. He clapped and smiled, but his stomach flipped as he watched the proud mentors and apprentices and could not help but picture Halt and Will. Will with a wide grin and Halt grim as ever but his eyes would give away his approval of the young boy. Gilan was yanked out of his thoughts by Crowley handing out assignments.
They were calm and normal movements and one Ranger retired allowing the graduate, Brenden, to take a fief. That is until near the very end when Crowley was wrapping up.
One Ranger spoke up, Gilan couldn't tell who from the voice and could not see him either, asking, "Who's taking Redmont?" Gilan froze at the thought of someone fully taking the fief that Halt had had for as long as he could remember, where he had spent his apprenticeship and Will's home.
Crowley stood still for a moment taking in the question and the thought of replacing his best friend before speaking and saying, "We will be continuing as we have when it comes to that. Gilan has been taking care of Redmont while Briggan has taken over Meric for the moment." Briggan, who was technically retired, had been doing just that while Gilan had been in his old fief, well when not hunting down Foldar. There was a moment where a few people grumbled before Crowley continued, "After all, Halt will only be gone for about a year and will be back to his position. There is no point in completely changing people around for the short term."
Another Ranger spoke up suddenly, "How do we know that Halt will actually be back in a year?" At this Gilan silently got up and slipped away from the celebration to his own tent, not hearing Crowley's reply. He sat in his own tent thinking of the question and the ramifications. Did the others really think Halt would not be back? Had they lost faith in him? What if Halt didn't come back? What if he did come back, but he hadn't been able to save Will? What would happen when they did get back? Also, that question excluded Will, did they believe that the apprentice would not be returning?
These questions and more swirled in Gilan's head as he sat at the entrance to his tent staring at the vague outline of his comrades sitting at the table by the large fire. Gilan sat alone like that for several minutes, almost an hour before the others started to move toward their own tents, when he suddenly found himself in the company of Crowley.
"I notice you left early," Crowley says calmly.
Gilan took a moment before replying, "I just couldn't sit there anymore."
They sit in silence for a moment before Crowley puts a hand on Gilan's shoulder and says softly, "I miss Halt too, and I wish Will was here." Gilan got choked up and could only nod in reply. Crowley continued saying, "You know that you did the right thing? Nothing you could have done would have changed what happened? We would likely all be dead if anything was different." Gilan scoffed and his Commandant turned him to look into his eyes and firmly said, "None of this is your fault." Gilan nods though he doesn't believe it and he knows that Crowley can see in his eyes that he doesn't. After a moment longer Crowley gives in and squeezes the shoulder that he still has a hand on and walks over to his own tent. Gilan watches him for a moment more before trying to sleep.
The next morning Gilan gets up early and packs up quickly. He mounts Blaze and before leading her out, looks around the clearing. Gilan knows that this will always be a different Gathering in his mind, but he hopes that next year will be different from his old mentor and young friend back. He hoped that next year would be back to normal or as normal as a Ranger's life gets. With that thought, he and Blaze headed out to go back to Redmont for the intermediate time.
A year later Gilan slowed as he came upon the forest yet again for the Gathering and smiled to himself as instead of continuing on the path, he and Blaze slipped into the forest at the side. He waited silently for only a few minutes before two riders on shaggy horses came around a bend in the road. As they approached Gilan quietly got off Blaze's back and stood in the shadows of the tree after signaling to Blaze that she should stay still and quiet.
Right before the two riders crossed over into the forest, Gilan slipped out right in front of the two riders. Tug and Ablard came to a stop as Halt looked at Gilan unimpressed and Will shook himself for a moment before smiling at the older man.
Unimpressed Halt called out, "You did not even try this time."
Gilan shook his head grinning before saying, "Did you see me coming though? Besides I missed you guys."
Halt raised an eyebrow as Will jumped down from Tug and hugged Gilan fiercely and muttered, "I didn't. And I missed you too." Gilan strengthened the hug but was careful to not be too hard as the younger boy still seemed smaller and thinner than he had been before Skandia. He pretended to not see the small grin that danced on Halt's lips.
After a moment the two broke apart and WIll remounted Tug while Gilan went back to Blaze and mounted her coming out to join the other two. As he came between the two, Gilan hit his forearm against his ex-mentor's in greeting. Then the three Rangers brought their horses to a trot toward the Gathering grounds. At first, they were silent as they went which Gilan thought was weird as before it seemed impossible for the young apprentice to stay quiet, at least when a new person joined a group.
Soon enough Gilan spoke up saying, "You ready for your first official Gathering?" while looking at the boy whose eyes went wide for a moment.
Will, after regaining his face, replied, "It might be my first Gathering, but I am a third year apprentice, I've got this."
Halt snorted before saying, "Apprentices who are overconfident often find themselves in trouble."
Will looked thoroughly chastised before saying, "The assessment can't be that hard, right?" His sentence ended in a high-pitched question.
Halt and Gilan looked at each other before the latter replied, "I don't know. Third year were some of the harder assessments, besides the final ones, and you didn't get to go through the first two." Gilan was only partially joking, but he felt bad for the joke as the apprentice grew even paler, if that was possible. Gilan glanced at Halt who shook his head at his former apprentice while looking at his current apprentice with barely disguised worry in his eyes.
Halt and Will had only been back in Auralen for about two months, which did mean that Will had had little time to prepare for this or recover from his ordeal. At the thought of the little that Gilan knew about Will's time in Skandia his stomach twisted and the idea that it was his fault came slithering back into his mind, but he pushed it back for Will's sake.
They continued on in silence as the older Rangers gave Will time to come to terms with what Gilan had told him before Halt said quietly, "I believe you will do alright." Will and Gilan both looked at their mentor with shock, never having heard him say anything like that to either of them before. Will smiled softly, but it did not reach his eyes.
Before any of them spoke again they entered the Gathering grounds. As they headed over to their typical camping spot several other Rangers stopped to look at the tree and call out greetings to Halt. Several sent smiles in Will's direction and when they passed the Commandant's pavilion Crowley looked up from his endless paperwork long enough to send a greeting with a smile to the three.
After setting up their camp, Will took his bow and went to the shooting range that had been set up. Apparently, he had taken Gilan's warning about his upcoming assessments to heart. After a moment Gilan followed behind Will slipping through the trees to watch, and Halt went to talk to Crowley.
When Gilan got to the range he watched for some time as Will shot arrow after arrow at different targets with super speed that Gilan found incredible. However, when Will ran out of arrows he saw the boy stare at his shots before gathering them and the apprentice had a soft frown on his face. Gilan knew that Will was a better shot than he had been at the same point, and was honestly already a better shot than some of the full-fledged Rangers. Gilan thought about telling Will that, but decided to watch for a little more.
As he waited the three new first-year apprentices came over with their own bows and watched for a moment before one of them spoke up, "You are so good." Will looked over at them calmly and smiled a little at the sight of the three young boys, though two of them were honestly larger than Will. Will nodded in reply as he let go of the arrow he had drawn and the three newbies watched in awe as the arrow hit the center of yet another target.
One of the younger boys spoke up suddenly, asking, "Do you have any advice about the assessments?" Will turned toward the boy with a start, his eyes wide as he considered the fact that these boys did not know him, who he was, and what he had done. Gilan was about to interject but decided to see how Will took care of the question.
Will breathed for a moment before replying, "I don't know. I did not take the first two assessments." The younger apprentices looked shocked and one of them spluttered out, "Then how do you have that," pointing at the bronze oak leaf around Will's neck.
Will quietly said, "It's a long story." The apprentices looked ready to ask more questions when Will quickly gathered his arrows and left them to their own practice, with the boys looking after him. Gilan stood there in the trees for a moment before following Will. He noticed Will slip into the woods near their tent and followed with a little bit of trouble. Gilan appreciated the fact that Will had been practicing his unseen movement as well, and it had been paying off.
Gilan realized they were heading to the nearby creek and when they got there Will stood at the bank, no longer caring if he was seen, believing he was far enough away from the others. Gilan considered coming right out but decided to watch the apprentice for a moment. He listened as Will whispered to himself and watched him bring one hand up to wipe at his cheeks and realized that Will was crying. Gilan felt bad at that moment and decided to reveal himself, so he stepped deliberately on a stick, breaking it. To his satisfaction, Will looked directly at Gilan following the sound to his shadow in the trees. What didn't satisfy Gilan was the redness to Will's eyes and the tear still traveling down his cheek, plus he noticed that Will's hands were shaking before he clasped them together.
Will spoke shakily, "Hey… Hey, Gil. What are you doing?"
Gilan smiled softly at the young boy as he replied, "I was gonna ask you the same thing. Plus, how are you?"
Will chuckled self-deprecating as he said, "Oh, I'm just fine. I can't even take the questioning of three boys. I'm going to fail my assessments. I can't stop shaking. And I haven't had a full night's rest in I don't know how long. Yes, Gilan, I'm just fine." Will, all the power gone from him looked down at Gilan's feet instead of his eyes. Gilan mentally kicked himself at the look of the small boy who seemed to curl in on himself before his very eyes.
Gilan walked forward slowly until he was right in front of Will and took the boy's shaking hands in his until the boy looked up at him. Then he said calmly, yet firmly, "You are not going to fail. You are one of the best shots I have ever seen. Your unseen movement is really coming along. You have a strategic mind that some people would kill to have. And you have more experience than most of the Rangers in this corp." Will went to speak again, but Gilan continued, "You have more experience, which you do not have to explain to anyone else. You went through some things that others could not survive. You have been back for less than two months, that is no where the time you need or deserve to recover, so it is alright that you are struggling." Will made a small noise in the back of his throat at that word, but a soft look from Gilan made him stay quiet. Gilan concluded, "Nightmares suck, but the fact that you are still functioning with all you went through makes you one of the strongest people I know."
"But.." Will started before Gilan interrupted with, "I had nightmares the entire year you were gone. I knew that at some level what was happening to you was my fault. I should not have left you alone and in charge of the others, but I am still here. You are here as well. That is what matters."
Will looked into Gilan's eyes that now had a few of his own tears in them as he hugged the taller man and said, "It was not your fault. I do not blame you and I know Even… Princess Cassandra does not blame you either." Gilan squeezed the smaller boy at this point letting the words sink in. He had not truly believed it when any of the older Rangers had tried to tell him that, but hearing it directly from one of the two he had hurt the most, he felt and believed it.
The two stayed there for a few minutes before heading back to the camp. Gilan had Will try to sneak through the forest and he followed a few moments later trying to catch him. Gilan only says Will three times on their way back to the camp, which was not bad at all. When they got back to their tents they found Halt making a stew and the two looked at each other before breaking into grins that spoke of their hope that the stew was rabbit.
Halt looked up at his apprentices with a raised eyebrow that asked where they had been. Gilan shook his head almost noticeably signaling that they would talk later.
Will smiled and started to talk about the training exercise they had just done on the way back and the three of them banter until the stew was ready and through supper. Soon after, Halt sent Will to bed citing the fact that Will's assessments would start early the next day and not the fact that the young boy looked ready to drop at any moment. Will half-heartedly argued through a yawn but went to bed. Gilan watched the boy go and knew that he would fall asleep almost immediately, how long he slept was another matter altogether.
Gilan and Halt sat at the fire with cups of coffee silently for a few minutes until Will's breathing evened out. Then Halt looked straight at his former apprentice and asked, "What happened?" Gilan told Halt exactly what happened earlier at the shooting range and the creek.
When he was finished Halt sighed and rubbed a hand across his face and said gruffly, "I knew this was going to be hard. Will has not been back long enough." Gilan nodded at this sentiment. "It is going to be a little difficult for him. Especially if people ask him questions about what happened, he will barely tell me what happened before Horace and I got there." Gilan tried to hide his look of surprise, but Halt never misses anything like that. "Yes, he hasn't told me everything, and I do not really blame him. He's been through a lot, more than most ever will." Gilan went to speak, but Halt interrupted him, "Which is why Crowley has given him a small leeway for this assessment." At a look from Gilan, "He still has to do them, but he is to be given a moment when or if he needs it, which I have a feeling he won't."
Gilan nods thoughtfully and replies, "It's good to have the option. You guys have been back for such a short time and he is so nervous that…" Gilan trailed off while Halt nodded. They sat there staring at the fire with their coffee in quiet contemplation for a few minutes more before the sound of Will's breathing picked up and he seemed to turn over in his sleep several times.
Halt and Gilan shared a look before moving towards the young boy's tent where Halt gently touched Will's hand while saying his name softly yet firmly. Gilan watched as his old mentor did this several more times before Will opened his eyes and sat up with a start. The boy's eyes were wide with panic and his breathing was still rough. Gilan watched as the far-away look in Will's eyes faded and suddenly Will was back. A single tear drifted down Will's face as he smiled a smile that never reached his eyes and nodded at his mentor. Who, to Gilan's surprise, pulled the boy into a hug, which Will melted into.
Will muttered a quick thanks as he pulled back and Halt shook his head signaling that it was not needed. Gilan smiled at the sight and backed away as Halt told the boy to get some more rest.
Halt came out of the tent and looked grimly at his old apprentice. They stood there silently for a few minutes before baying each other good night and heading to bed. Gilan laid awake for some time after as he thought of the young boy sleeping just a few meters away. He knew that the assessments would go just fine if Will could get out of his own head. The boy would be the best of them if he could just believe in himself. With that thought, he fell asleep.
The rest of the Gathering passed quickly with Gilan talking with his fellow Rangers, Crowley and Halt taking care of some overdue work, and Will and the other apprentices, going through their assessments slowly but surely. Every night there was at least one instance of Will waking from a nightmare, but it honestly was not too bad. There was one incident that Gilan could not get out of his mind however.
Gilan had been at one of the other fires talking to a couple of other Rangers, Gregory and Ian. They had been discussing how the year had gone in their different fiefs and complaining as everyone did about the thieves and outlaws they dealt with, but mostly the paperwork. For any Ranger paperwork was the bane of their existence.
Anyways, they were talking and Will came over to ask Gilan a question and had just gotten out, "Hey, Gilan." When he heard Ian say, "It almost makes me wish we could have slaves to do all the paperwork for us."
Gilan turned to the younger boy and said, "Yes, Will?" as Gregory and Ian chuckled softly at Ian's joke.
Will on the other hand had gone extremely pale and stammered out a quick, "I was just going to ask. I… Nevermind." The skinny and pale boy hurried away back toward their own camp and Gilan stared after him for a moment wondering what had just happened.
Gregory spoke up, "Does he always act like that?" The two Rangers looked amused until Gilan looked back at them with a look of concern on his features.
Gilan went back to exactly what happened in his head and remembered the word slave being used and mentally hit himself. He replied, "No," as he got up and went after the boy.
He found Will sitting at the entrance to his tent and asked, "All you alright?" It was a stupid question, but all he could think of. Will looked up at him and Gilan noticed the way his eyes were not focused and his hands were shaking.
Gilan knelt in front of the young man and took Will's hands in his. Softly he said, "You are at the Gathering. You are not in Skandia. You are no longer a slave. All you heard was a joke." Slowly as Gilan continued to relay statements, Will came back to the present and stopped shaking.
Will looked gratefully, but ashamed at Gilan as he said, "I shouldn't be affected like that by a joke."
Gilan shook his head at the young apprentice and reminded him, "You have gone through a lot. Some things will be harder than others. It's alright that something like this happened, we just have to figure out how to get you through it is all." Will looked at him gratefully and they went about their day, though the moment was still at the back of his mind the entire day.
Nothing large happened again until the last day. Will made it through all of his assessments with little fuss and no moments that the leeway he had been provided was needed. There were no graduating apprentices this year so there was nothing before the feast.
That morning to both Will and Gilan's surprise, Halt had asked Will to hand him his oak leaf, which after a moment and stern look from Halt he did. Gilan later learned what the senior Ranger was doing, but in the moment he was completely unknowing and exchanged curious looks with Will.
Later that night at the feast Will sat nervously next to Gilan as he waited for his test results. Gilan smiled broadly at the apprentice believing and knowing that the boy had done well. Finally, it came to the business part of the night and Crowley stood in front of the members of the corps and smiled.
"Another Gathering gone. It's been a strange last few years, but at least we are all here and able to come together. Anyways, I have here the results on the assessments." Crowley started with the second year apprentices, which a few Rangers wondered at as the oldest usually go first. Then as the first year apprentices' were given scores and welcomed to the corps, their mentors took them to the front and gave them their oak leaves. Will watched in wonder at the small ceremony and wondered why he had not heard his scores yet. Gilan smiled at both the new apprentices and Will as he watched.
When he was done with the first years he looked across the group of Rangers and called out, "Will, would you come up here please?" Will looked startled and didn't move for a moment.
Will looked at Gilan who gazed back saying, "Don't look at me. Get up there." With a small push Will got out of his seat and went to stand by Crowley who put a hand on his shoulder.
Crowley spoke with a hint of pride, "Most of you know this boy. Will, Halt's apprentice. He is technically a third year apprentice and was tested as so, even though this was his first actual full Gathering and time being assessed. Based on that, it is a fair point to say that you have not been properly welcomed into the corps, is it not Will?"
Will looked at the Ranger Commandant with wide eyes as he stuttered out, "No, sir."
Crowley grinned assuredly at the young man as he continued, "That is what I thought. Well, with these scores, you are certainly welcome. With only two months of proper training in the past year, you Will, have scored almost perfect in all areas." The Rangers around them all cheered as Halt came forward holding Will's bronze oak leaf and put the chain back around his apprentice's neck. The two hugged and Will tried to hide the couple of tears that ran down his face, but Gilan still saw them. Will and Halt came back to their seats near Gilan and Gilan gave the younger man a giant hug and ruffled his hair much to Will's annoyance.
The rest of the night passed in a blur and the next day came early with Will, Halt and Gilan deciding to start the journey together before Gilan would need to split off to head to his own fief. As they packed Will realized that he had actually slept through the previous night and the two older Rangers smiled at the boy, relieved that he seemed to be recovering. And as they left the clearing, Gilan looked back and thought, 'I hope that the next few Gatherings aren't this chaotic.' Then turned to follow Will and Halt, his friends, back to their homes.