Ranger's Apprentice Quick Stories

Rangers of the West

It's sure been a while, but I'm in college and finals week approaches, so please enjoy some stress-relieving RA one shots!

In a world, where Rangers are officers of the wild west...

Halt rolled his eyes at the sheriff that stomped through the saloon.

"How can anyone be expected to sneak up on the outlaws when their boots rattle with every step?" The grizzled man complained under his breath. Beside him, his handsome young companion grinned softly.

"It's not the boots that rattle, Halt," Will informed him. "It's his spurs."

Halt glared at the sheriff's back. The sheriff, too engrossed at the counter while he ordered a drink, was unaware of Halt's expression.

"Don't even get me started on those," Halt grumbled in response to Will's comment.

"On what?" Will asked. "Spurs?"

Halt took a long gulp of his drink before leaned back and crossing his arms over his chest.

"A real man doesn't need a sharp object to get his horse moving," he said.

"A real man doesn't ride a shaggy pony like the one you've gone and tied up out front, there," a voice said. Halt glanced over his shoulder, eyebrows lowered, to see the sheriff's deputy standing over him.

"Beg your pardon?" Will asked defensively.

"Please, Will," Halt said in a bored voice, sitting back up and leaning one hand on the table to turn for a better look at the deputy. "Don't beg this man for anything. Except perhaps when asking him to take a bath."

The deputy frowned. Halt sighed.

"Oh right, sorry," he said sarcastically. "I forget about the... exceptions you make here for your lawmen to be hired. So much for, 'only the best.' I'll dumb it down for you. I'm trying to tell you that you smell."

The deputy uncrossed his own arms now, his face turning bright red.

"Badly," Halt added, as if the deputy might not have already guessed his meaning.

Beside his superior, Will casually looked away from both men, glancing around the saloon. The sheriff had seemed to finish ordering his drink and was taking note of his deputy's conversation with the two of them.

"Wonderful," Will muttered to himself. "Halt, could we please get a move on. I'd like to get back to Wensley before sundown."

"Wensley, you say?"

The sheriff was behind them now, on the opposite side of their table from his deputy. Both men stood over Halt and Will, the sheriff smiling in a way that didn't reach his eyes.

"I thought Wensley was a ghost town," the sheriff commented. Will bit his lip, annoyed by the common tease. While the town that Halt and Will were in charge of was certainly small, it was no ghost town. Unfortunately, there was a town several miles away that was similarly named and had become a true ghost town, and many liked to hint that Wensley was next.

"That's Wessley," Will corrected politely. "Though I don't blame your confusion. Spelling is difficult for some people."

The sheriff's face was now a similar shade of red compared to his deputy. Will noticed Halt casting an appreciative glance to him in response to his quip. Will felt pride blossom in his chest.

"If you'll excuse us," Halt said, standing to his feet.

In contrast to the clothing of the sheriff and deputy of this town, Halt and Will wore more subtle apparel. Their leather pants were a dark brown color and were not as tight as the other officers', but weren't so loose that they got in the way when the men were engaged with fighting outlaws. Their loose shirts were a solid tan, similar to the dust of the surrounding lands. They wore leather vests that resembled the same dark brown as their pants. Their boots were soft-soled leather and didn't include the spurs that Halt had previously complained about. Around their waist was a simple, leather belt that held their thick knives and a holster on either side for their pistols. Their badges were tucked underneath their vests. Even their hats served a practical purpose. They blocked the sun from both men's eyes, but were also worn lower on their heads than most officers wore theirs. It cast a dark shadow over their faces and hid the whites of their eyes when needed.

While other officers wanted to flaunt their position, Will and Halt sought to be unimpressive. It was a tactic that they two of them, along with several other trusted sheriffs from nearby towns, had taken on. They'd formed a sort of coalition, a group led by Crowley, a red-haired fellow from several towns over that Halt had formed a friendship with many years ago.

The two men before them, obviously, were not part of this coalition. 

"Hold it just a moment," the sheriff said as Halt and Will made to leave. "You're from Wensley, you say?"

Neither man answered.

"Do you know mayor Arald?"

Halt and Will exchanged a glance. Halt, being the superior of the two, took the lead on speaking.

"Well we are the sheriff and deputy of the town," he commented dryly, ignoring the sheriff's choke of surprise. "Don't you think it would make sense for us to know our mayor?"

Both of the men attempting to rough up Halt and Will went pale.

"Th-The sheriff?" The deputy stuttered.

Halt nodded.

"Of Wensley village?"

Will surprised a smile as Halt raised his eyebrow.

"You really do struggle with your words, don't you?"

In truth, Halt and Will both knew why the men were acting this way. Everyone had heard of the sheriff of Wensley village. Sheriff Halt, and his deputy Will, were legendary in rounding up the most catastrophic outlaws of the west. They had played a crucial role in taking down Morgarath the Black Rider. They had successfully rounded up a bandit group known as the Temujs that had been a problem for years, almost single handedly. Everyone, especially other officers, had heard of them.

And they were standing before the two men now, staring at them both with hard expressions.

"O-o-our apologies, sheriff!" The other senior officer said to Halt. Quickly, he backed away to allow Halt access to the door.

Halt grunted, leaving the saloon. The double doors continued to swing in and out several times before finally coming to a stop well after Halt and Will had mounted their horses and began to ride away.

"You let them off the hook awfully easy," Will commented curiously. Halt raised an eyebrow in his deputy's direction.

"What makes you think I let them off the hook?"

Slowly, he lifted his left hand. Hanging from two of his fingers were the pistols of both the sheriff and the deputy. Will barked a laugh.

"How on earth-"

"You'll learn one day," Halt said, the ghost of smile playing on his lips.

Beneath the two officers, Tug and Abelard seemed to snicker.