Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction, made possible by the Ranger's Apprentice by John Flanagan. I have only borrowed his creation and I make no money. For this story I have used several other Rangers from the books, though I've also added my own. I do this only in the hope to entertain…

Author's Note: No harm shall come to the characters that can't be fixed with enough coffee…

Chapter 17

Arriving at Castle Araluen Halt could tell something was wrong even before they had taken their horses to the stable. No one would meet his eye, and beside him, Pauline frowned. She had obviously noted the same thing he had, and both wondered what it was that had caused it.

Leading Abelard into the stable Halt looked around, eyes narrowed as a few stable boys rushed to get out of his way.

"This is a bit odd," Pauline mused as she stroked the velvet mule of her own horse.

"I bet that idiot apprentice of mine is behind this," Halt snorted, his eyes a few stalls away from where Abelard now stood. Beyond Cropper, Crowley's horse, was a bay mare he knew as well as his own horse. Blaze stood with her head hanging, looking forlorn and not interested at all in anyone entering. In this stable, she was likely to feel safe, but Cropper had nickered a greeting as Abelard entered, and so should Blaze have done. Having removed the saddle from his pony, Halt allowed the rest to wait as he strolled over to the stall to look the mare over. She was a little taller than most Ranger horses. A good thing given Gilan's height, even if it sometimes gave her disadvantages. She was a little more vulnerable to coming up lame as her legs were longer and more fine boned than either Abelard and Tug were. She stood two full hands higher than Abelard, about the same of Tug, and a hand and a half over Cropper.

Her manger had some oats in it, and her water bucket was full of fresh water. There was no reason for her to look so forlorn, but something was clearly wrong with her.

"Do you suppose something has happened to Gilan?" Pauline stood beside him, holding out an apple for Blaze who sniffed it, seemed to debate the issue and then took it. Pushing her nose against her hand as she chewed.

"She does not seem to be hurt, so he's either gotten himself stuck with Crowley's paperwork and neglected her, or he has got himself into some trouble," Halt mused. Rubbing Blaze's forehead, just under the forelock where he knew she liked it he turned back to Abelard. As soon as he had brushed, fed and settled his horse, he would go up to Crowley and find out what was going on.

Glancing over his shoulder he smiled softly as he noticed that Pauline was still standing beside Blaze. She had entered the stall and stood stroking the strong neck while the mare seemed to lean into her touch. Obviously Blaze was enjoying her ministrations, so as he had finished with Abelard he continued with her horse.

"If he's gotten himself hurt through some stupidity, I'll have a good talk with him," he stated firmly.

"You know Gilan's not likely to have done that," Pauline wasn't phased at all. She knew he was trying to hide his own concern. Seeing Blaze in such a state was worrisome. "You trained him very well, if something has happened to Gilan, it won't be because he did something foolish, and you know it."

"Yes, but it wouldn't be the first time he still managed to get himself into more trouble than he could handle," Halt sighed.

"That does tend to happen, no matter how skilled someone is," Pauline agreed, giving Blaze a last pat. "We'd better go up and see Crowley, he'll know for certain."

That no one stopped them as they entered the castle was not so strange, they were both so well known as to be recognized on sight. However, Halt easily noticed that many of the servants and pages seemed to have very urgent business that took them very quickly away from them. Beside him, Pauline frowned as she gently hiked up her skirt lightly before starting up the stairs.

"This is rather odd," she mused.

"Crowley had better have a good explanation for this," Halt half growled. There was plenty enough stairs in the tower that it took them some time. Not for the first time Halt found himself contemplating if one could use them to wear his first apprentice out. Back when he first took Gilan as his apprentice, he had still seemed full of that endless energy that saw him needing to constantly be moving. Halt had been tempted to set him running up and down the stairs in Castle Redmont for a few hours, just to see if it would wear him out.

He hadn't, for fear he'd wear the stairs down first…

The door to Crowley's office was slightly ajar, so Halt simply pushed it open. The sandy haired Ranger sat at the desk looked up, and jumped to his feet. It was an almost startled movement that caused Halt to frown. Something was going on, and he was sure by now he would not like it. "What has Gilan got himself into?" he demanded. "Blaze looks like there's been a ban on apples, and no one will face us. I gather it has something to do with that fool boy."

"Gilan is dead," Crowley came around the desk. Though he hated being so blunt, he knew anything else would just be cruel. There was no way to soften a blow like that, and to try was only to prolong it.

Halt's eyes narrowed, his jaw set, staring at Crowley as if he thought he had not heard him correctly. Beside him, Pauline visibly staggered. Her face was ashen as she raised a hand to her mouth. "Oh, my lord…"

"I had a mission that needed to be dealt with urgently," Crowley chewed his lip. "With you away, I sent Gilan with Will. They were helping Harcourt, there was some really bad business in his Fief. He would never have been able to handle it on his own. I felt together, Will and Gilan should not have any trouble handling it."

"What happened?" Halt demanded, he had not yet made a statement upon the death of his apprentice. Neither to accept it or to deny it.

"It was a very bad gang of bandits, they burned farms, brutally murdering the people, they tracked them. And once they caught up with them, Gilan went on to spy on their camp. A small group they had not known about coming from behind them were able to take Will captive, as he was trying to free him, Gilan was killed. Harcourt had laid low as they took Will, to act later. Gilan didn't know where he was when he attacked. After he, after he was killed, Harcourt was able to free Will and the two came here to make their report."

"Where's Will?" Halt sounded calm, angry but calm, thought Crowley knew him better than so. His hand was clenched in a white knuckled fist.

"Back in Redmont, I wasn't about to let him remain here and maybe decide he wanted to try and deal with them himself. He's in no fit state to do so. He blames himself though we all tried to tell him it wasn't his fault." Crowley sighed. "I'm sorry Halt, I'm so sorry…"

"It wasn't your fault either," Pauline spoke, her eyes filled with tears she did not try to wipe away. "You would never have let him get hurt if you could help it."

"Even so, I sent him," Crowley shook his head. "And even if it was the right thing to do at the time, I really wish I had not done so."

"Gilan would never have shirked his duty," Halt stated stiffly. "His sense of honour wouldn't have let him."

"Poor David," Pauline shook his head. "How is he?"

"He's taking it hard," Crowley sighed. "Gilan was all he had, King Duncan tried to get him to take some time to grieve, but he wouldn't. He insisted on keeping busy, so Duncan sent him on a short mission to Norgate. It's probably the best thing for him. He's not really spoken to anyone about it at all, since he talked to Will. He should be back soon though."

"What did he say to Will?" Halt frowned.

It was enough to make Crowley smile. Halt counted Sir David a friend, a close friend even, but he was still very protective of his apprentice, worried that David in his grief might have spoken out of turn. "He told Will that it wasn't his fault, that Gilan knew the risk he took, and he gave him Gilan's sword."

Halt nodded slowly, his face haggard and worn. To Crowley, he seemed to have aged since he stepped into the room. "I want to see the report."

"I have it here," Crowley moved over to the cabinet where he kept all his files. He did not even need to look to grab the right one. Three reports, one from Will, one from Harcourt and one by himself. He was wondering what Halt would say of it, if he would think the same thing Crowley himself did.

Halt grabbed them, stalking off towards the table on the other side of the room where he spread them out. Pauline, glancing at him stepped closer to Crowley and laid a hand on his arm. "How are you doing?"

"Not that good, but then none of us are," he sighed. "I knew it was a dangerous assignment, and I was worried about Harcourt, he really doesn't have the expertise for something of that magnitude. Egon trained him as well as he was able, but Egon had some, difficulties himself sometimes. He's been doing fine in that Fief, up till now, as they've not really had anything much more dangerous than a few poachers and Highwaymen. I knew he'd be in over his head, but I felt Gilan and Will would be able to handle it. Harcourt has been a Ranger for longer than Gilan, but he wouldn't make a fuss about following his orders, and Gilan has always been good at this sort of thing."

"He certainly has," Pauline stated, glancing towards where Halt was engrossed in the report, a scowl on his face. It would take someone who knew him to know how much he was hurting. Though then she knew Crowley would be hurting almost as bad himself. He just wouldn't admit it when he felt Halt was the one who was suffering the most. "He always was such a sweet boy," she mused.

"I always thought I'd have him take over after me," Crowley shook his head. "His organizing skills were almost as good as mine, and he'd see all the little things in the reports, the things that didn't look right, even when no one else seemed to notice." Shaking himself he allowed his shoulder to slump. "You must be tired and hungry after the journey here, I'll have some coffee and something to eat brought up."

"I think that would be a good idea," Pauline nodded. She knew they would not leave Crowley's office anytime soon. Not before Halt was satisfied he knew every little detail in those reports, everything that had come to cost him his first apprentice life.

Once he was satisfied, she planned to go over them with a fine toothed comb herself, and she would make damn certain there hadn't been any foul play involved… Gilan had not been her apprentice, not really. Yet she had been there when Halt trained him, she had seen him quite often then, and she had seen how hard he worked and how he grew and matured into a fine young man. She had always had a fondness for him, ever since she first really met him.

Having travelled with Baron Arald many times, she had been vaguely aware of Sir David's son. At Hackham Heath, that boy had really proved himself and she had seen the way Halt interacted with the boy. How he even went out of his way to compliment his work and give him advice, when most of the time he only grouched and grumbled. To her it had been evident then that Halt would wind up training the boy, and she had decided it was just as well she found her own place in his life when he did. She would not crowd in on the training, nor on the relationship they shared, but she found the youth to be a delightful company and the sweetest young man she knew.

Crowley had sent one of the young boys in the castle down to the kitchen, and he now returned, almost staggering under the heavy tray. There was the ever present coffee as well as hand pies, cold roast chicken and thick slices of bread with a crock of fresh butter.

Crowley took it from the boy and set it on the table, Halt did not even look up. Sitting down beside him, Pauline took one of the reports to peruse. Frowning as she read, Will's report was slightly disjointed. No doubt as he was still in shock from the event. She knew he would find it hard to move on, he had looked up to Gilan like a brother.

Harcourt's report confused her more, she did not really know him. She had never met him and knew only what Halt, Crowley and Gilan had told her. It seemed strange though, as if something was missing…

TBC Please review, the caffeine addicted Cricket is hungry…