Will tried to sneak by Ellya's cabin, he just couldn't contend with her determination. She didn't make a sound when she heard Tug walk by, and he didn't see her staring at him through the curtains, standing like she had all night so she wouldn't miss Will when he passed by. She grabbed her strange looking bow and supply bag, and flung her cloak around her shoulders. She had convinced her mom that she could go a week without the horse, so she jumped on him, having already saddled him, a old grey animal named Dust that looked emancipated despite the fact he was well fed. Dust was once named Slate, but when he became old and slightly decrepit, his name was gradually changed to Dust.
There were no forks in the road for a very long way, so for the time being Ellya didn't have to worry about missing a turn. She rode as long as she felt was safe for Dust, not as long as she hoped for, though she supposed that Will would find it harder to realize she was trailing him. She hoped she didn't lose him and end up wandering around in circles, looking for a place only a few people knew about. She knew those few people would never tell where the Gathering Grounds were, even if she did find a Ranger or ex-Ranger. There was a chance she would be accepted as a Ranger's apprentice if she didn't go through with her plan, but if she did, she had a hard time believing anyone would go against her becoming one of them. She led Dust to the tree line and curled up against him for protection against the cold, for his sake as much as her own. Her cloak was thick and warm, and it brought her comfort as she traced the places were she sowed blob-shaped swaths green fabric on a brown cloak. She smiled as she remembered the time she realized there was too much brown on her cloak for it to be a real Ranger's cloak. She had been so upset at the time. Now, she was grateful for it, because it caused her to realize that unseen moving wasn't magic, but skill. It was what made her realize she could actually be a Ranger one day, not just play act at being one. That was the thought that made her train to be a Ranger, and that made her not give up on anything, related to Rangers or otherwise.
In the morning, she had a flash of brilliance. She took fistfuls of mud and smeared Dust's ragged coat with it. He looked at her with a look of deep betrayal.
"It's not that bad. Man up, or rather, horse up," she said with a smile, sticking moss and leaves in the sticky dirt. She galloped on the edge of the trees, relatively hidden but with a good view of the road. By noon, she could see a hooded figure with a long bow riding on a shaggy horse. "A Ranger," she thought. She was very lucky that he was walking his horse. There was no way Dust could keep up with a Ranger's forced march. The Ranger, Will she presumed, stiffened and looked back, as if he sensed her presence. She sat stock still, to Dust's delight, and eventually he moved on. She trailed him as close as she felt comfortable doing. It would be a disaster if he caught her, though he might take it as a sign she was the perfect candidate to be a Ranger, inquisitive and irrepressible, but her plan was more fun. She grinned slightly maliciously. The Rangers wouldn't know what hit them.