Author's note: I didn't change this chapter much, so I'm still not happy with it. Just trying to fix the plot so I can actually progress the story. Hope you enjoy it, and thanks for reading!

"Will!"

Will woke. For a few seconds, he wondered where he was. It was dark and freezing. His whole body ached, and he felt sweaty and sick. He could hear strange sounds, but it sounded like he had his head underwater and was painfully aware of his heart racing. He closed his eyes and tried to return to sleep's sweet embrace.

Something shook him, not too gently either. His eyes snapped open. A figure loomed over him in the darkness, features blurred, but he could tell it was a man, and it wasn't Halt.

Heart racing, he struggled to rise, fumbling for anything he could use to defend himself, but something was holding him down.

"Hey! Hey! Easy." said the blur, "Just relax! It's Gilan!"

"Gilan?" Will relaxed a little and blinked several times, trying to clear his vision. Gilan was hovering over him, eyes full of worry.

"Take it easy, Will," Gilan said gently, taking his hands away. Will sat up slowly, closing his eyes again as the world spun. He felt Gilan wrap an arm around his shoulders.

"What happened," He muttered.

"You were poisoned. We think it was the coffee."

Will sensed Gilan was joking, but he couldn't find the strength to laugh.

"You got hit, knife must have been poisoned." Gilan said after a seconds silence.

"Why am I on the floor?" Will asked, forcing his eyes back open, despite the pounding in his head.

Gilan looked guilty but worried. "You… stopped breathing." He said slowly. "The stuff the healer gave us took a while to start working. Thought I was gonna have to bring you back myself."

Will frowned, not understanding.

"You know," Gilan grinned, "Kiss of life and all that."

Will flinched back. There was a really long, awkward silence.

"I'm glad the potion worked," Will smiled weakly.

"Me too. I'm glad you're back. And Halt has been so worried about you."

Will couldn't imagine Halt being worried about anything, least of all him. He was sure Halt would just get another apprentice if he died. An apprentice that knew how to dodge better. Then a thought struck him. He'd the assassin had aimed at him, instead of taking what was a pretty clear shot at the Baron. But what if that meant… fear bloomed in his chest.

"Where is Halt anyway?" Asked Will, trying to brush away the thought.

"Out… actually." Gilan looked outside at the moonlight breaking through the heavy clouds. "He should be back by now."

"Where did he go?" Will cringed as he tried to stand, only to have Gilan force him back down again with a stern look.

"Doing Ranger business. Don't worry about that, Will, not until you've recovered."

Will looked past Gilan out to the rest of the cottage. There was dust everywhere, the firewood looked severely depleted, and suddenly a thought struck Will like a kick from a horse. "Gil, how long have I been out?"

Gilan made no move to answer, eyeing him with great concern.

"Gilan?"

"It's... been a full day,"

"What!" He launched up, and Gilan wasn't quite fast enough to stop him. The world tipped dangerously, and his stomach gave a sickening lurch. If not for Gilan, who had a tight hold of Will's shoulders by this point, he undoubtedly would have slammed back into the ground.

"Easy!" Gilan grimaced at him. "Halt'll kill me if he comes back and you've knocked yourself out."

Will couldn't help the little stab of fear in his heart. "What do you think is taking him so long?"

"Maybe he found the assassin! Now sit down, you daft fool!"

Will clung to Gilan as he was led over to the couch, dropping down immediately when they got close. Just from those few steps, he was already panting and aching. The cold night air was soothing against his skin, but in seconds he was shivering. He heard Gilan leave and come back a moment later then a blanket was spread over him.

"Tell me more." He rasped.

"I think you've had enough excitement for one night," Gilan said gently.

"But this assassin. How do we know he's after the Baron?"

"Well. I mean he went right for him, you were there-"

"That's not what I saw."

Gilan paused for a minute, and sat, digesting that thought.

It made sense, sure, that the Baron would be the target. But, of course, the Baron wasn't the only person of interest in Redmont.

Finally, Will voiced the fear that had been growing in him. "He could have hit the Baron easily, he was close enough. But he didn't. I think he was there for Halt."

*** In the castle village ***

Halt was in freezing darkness, painfully aware it had been much longer than an hour, but hoped Gilan would have the good sense to trust him and stay put. He'd been on his way back, mind full of fear for Will, when he'd first seen a black clad man sprinting through the dark, taking great pains to be quiet. Halt was immediately suspicious, so he'd crept after the man, slowly at first, but soon found himself having to be uncomfortably swift to keep up.

If the man hadn't been stopping every few minutes and looking over his shoulder to ensure he wasn't being followed, Halt could have never followed him. Not on foot, anyway. Not without being seen.

The man swerved down behind some houses, and Halt found him leaning over, palms on his thighs, his breath visible in the frosty air. But only for a moment. He staggered back upright and continued to run. In that brief moment, Halt caught sight of his face. The man was smiling.

Halt faltered, suddenly all senses on high alert. Something's not right here.

A movement behind him, he felt a breath on the back of his neck. But when he turned and surveyed the darkness, there was nothing. He cursed silently as he realised he'd lost sight of his quarry in the distraction. But just as he turned to race back down where he was sure his quarry had gone, a figure stepped out of the darkness, and in the faint light, he saw a silver gleam.

This complicates things.