Halt sighed as he pulled up to Malcolm's small village in the middle of Grimsdell forest. Whilst Halt had never been there before, he knew what to look for on the trees and used those to tell himself that he was in the right direction. Beyond that he allowed Abelard to have his head and lead Halt through trees.

Often to the horse's amusement, that last statement was very literal.

Out of the corner of his eye Halt saw something flash as a man ran past, silent as Gil. He shook his head in amazement. Will had often described the features of the people who lived here but it never seemed to amaze Halt. These people were just as good as any Ranger and this all came naturally to them.

Suddenly loud barking rang through the trees and Halt allowed himself a small smile.

"Shadow!" he called. At once the barking stopped and Halt told Abelard to stop. Two seconds later a dogs came out of the trees at full speed followed shortly by a tall man.

"I'm a friend of Will's here to ask a favour of Malcolm," Halt said kindly. The gentle giant nodded and started walking off. Obediently, Shadow followed, playing constantly at his heels. Halt allowed himself to smile again, remembering how much Will had appreciated the company of the dog and now Ebony.

After about a further two minutes of walking the pair reached the small cabin in the trees. Halt forced himself to walk as though he knew what he was doing and was confident in it. Here he knew, he was the odd one out, everyone else had a secret. They had all gotten used to Will, Horace and Alyss. Heck they had even managed to get used to the Skandian crew, although those people weren't normal at best.

The cabin was fairly small, but also on the large side at the same time. It would have been slightly bigger than a typical Ranger one, but Halt knew that it was so the patients could be housed if they needed more care over night. It had Malcolm's room and two others, Halt knowing a floor plan from what Will had drawn in the debriefing after his mission here. Out the front there was a large fire pit, it had been dug when the Skandians had arrived, Will had claimed, and never removed because at night it had proven to only add to the magic air of the place.

When the Skandians had actually been here, the people had heard their partying and decided that it was unsafe to enter the forest ever again. It did have its advantages, such as the game generally not being scared off and protection of the people, but there were disadvantages. Orman occasionally visited the person who saved his life and so had to hide that fact every time. This led to the people believing that he practiced magic, which whilst he denied, Halt was forced to agree that in some way, those rumors were helpful.

Just not in cases like this.

Halt knocked on the door to the cabin and was told to walk in and take a seat. Opening the front door, he found a small waiting area set up in what must have once been a living room. There was a fire going that kept the room at a nice temperature, which Halt appreciated after his long ride. There were multiple seats, all with cushions lined up against one wall and a rack for coats and other assorted things by the door. Unwillingly Halt took off his cloak and hung it up. He didn't want it to appear as though he was bullying Malcolm into any decisions but was thankful to be welcomed into his home, even though he hadn't been officially yet. Whilst Halt felt naked without his cloak, it had gathered dew from earlier in the morning and retained it, making it damp and now, humid despite the slightly chilly outside temperature. After making sure the rotten thing wasn't going to drip all over the floor, Halt sat down and sighed, letting the recent tensions run out of his bones.

"Your ailment is called 'getting old'," Malcolm said with a grin at Halt. He knew that the sight of a Ranger was not a good one. They just brought trouble, and this one, he knew was the one Will had begged him to save from poison a few years prior.

"Tell me something new," Halt admitted, getting up to greet the healer.

"Who's dying now?" Malcolm asked walking into the back area. Before he did so however he blew out the lantern that sat on his porch saying he was accepting people in that time.

"The whole corps."

"That is pretty serious then. I'm not sure that there is a cure for that. Perhaps it is just getting old?" Malcolm joked, automatically assuming that the actual event was something smaller that was just getting disproportioned now. In hindsight it would be something for the Rangers to laugh at. They seemed willing to laugh at nearly anything, except difficulties relating the heart.

"Will has been declared insane and majority of the Rangers are on the run again," said Halt.

"Well that certainly is something that is an issue, but I don't understand where my connection to that all is. I live a simple life helping after all. I suppose I could run tests to see if Will was insane in my own opinion, but that is rather opinionated."

"I know he isn't insane and that's all the proof I need," Halt snapped. Malcolm raised one eyebrow and Halt suddenly got the feeling that he was being lectured by his father again.

"Sometimes those closest to people refuse to acknowledge it."

"The person who was sent out to see if what Will had said was true was later declared insane before even mentioning the mission."

"Well that is an issue. Have you attempted to raise that issue with your commander?"

"He isn't listening. For some reason he is acting off, and I have a feeling it has something to do with what Will saw," Halt said.

Malcolm paused and placed the cup of coffee he had been preparing in front of Halt. If this man was anything like the others he had met earlier then he was rather fond of his coffee. In the same way he also placed a jar of honey in front of him. Halt sighed in content before frowning again.

"Arridian coffee?" he asked. Malcolm looked sheepish.

"I have grown rather fond of it since Will and Horace stayed here for a while."

"Will saw a witch."

"They don't exist."

"You don't sound so sure at that."

"That's because I'm not. I am a person of science you see and when I am unable to explain a few rumors I go digging a little further. Nothing came up more solid than anything else. Many people had reported seeing her but don't actually remembering anything about it. What I do know is that she is wanted in multiple towns for being a witch," Malcolm stated. He had now sat down in front of Halt and was leaning back.

Halt was forced to pause and think for a moment. Was there a point to him coming here after all? It was well known that Malcolm was a person who prefered solid science rather than anything else and they were now dealing with a witch.

"There is one thing however. I think I know how to stop her."

Don't ever ask me to use big words when I am sick. This is what happens. And I can't remember anyone's name let alone the spelling and I am at home but can't get to the books where it is mentioned.

What was your costume for halloween? Mine was a non-aggressive, sparkly, vegetarian vampire. ;)

Aly