The Fires of Esus - Ranger's Apprentice

Chapter 22: Tricked

The next morning, Alyss left her chambers early. Her room in Castle Redmont, directly next to Halt and Pauline's, was large and comfortable, courtesy of the Baron. But it always felt cold and lonely. It was the place she stayed when Will left for long trips when she wouldn't see him for weeks, even months at a time. This room, no matter how luxurious, only reminded her that Will wasn't here, and that made it a terrible place to stay in. She rose before the sun, tired from a restless night alone in the massive bed, dressed quickly and resolved to do some work in her office before everyone else arrived.

Sitting in that room all alone wouldn't do her any good, after all. Groveling in her own anxiety wasn't going to make him come back any faster. Solving this strange mystery, and catching the murderers, would.

As she stepped out into the hall, not looking back at the desolate room behind her, and jumped a little as another door nearby clicked shut. Sure enough, Halt was just letting go of the handle of his own door down the hall. He strolled up to her, whispering, "I heard you get up, and I wanted to come with you, as long as you're heading to the kitchens to get some breakfast."

"I can get breakfast myself, you know," she said softly, not meeting his eyes. I'm really not in the mood for his overprotectiveness.

Halt frowned slightly as he sensed her discouraged mood. "I'm not joining you for any particular reason, I know you're perfectly capable of eating alone. But Pauline is tired, so she won't be up for a while, and I figured you could use some company." She was still staring dejectedly at the floor. "Sleep badly?"

"I always do." She didn't have to finish the sentence. Halt knew what she meant. When Will is gone, I always sleep terribly.

He nodded once, and then lead her down to breakfast without another word.

Ten minutes later, after a brisk and silent breakfast, Halt walked Alyss to her office. "The meeting is at eleven o'clock, so I think we should meet around ten to get into our positions and report to Athol. The King and all the council members will be there, and I'm thinking we'll have some extra guards stationed outside to help if anything goes wrong. I'll be--"

"I know, Halt. You'll be with me, overseeing it all," Alyss cut in, her voice quiet. She didn't even try to hide the exhaustion in her voice.

He stopped cold as he was reaching for her door handle, turning towards her with a concerned expression. "What's wrong?" he asked simply.

That was what Alyss loved about Halt. He always knew exactly what questions to ask, and didn't waste words asking them.

"Nothing important to the meeting, or the fires. Just... personal things."

He didn't move, his face unchanging. "Would you like to tell me about it?"

Alyss felt herself nodding. "I would." Her voice was even smaller. She was shocked to realize she was holding back tears.

Halt gently took her hand, and wordlessly walked with her back out of the Courier's wing and down to the garden in another courtyard of the castle, her favorite garden. She and Will would sit together on benches next to the pond here, and talk about everything and nothing at all. She was touched that Halt remembered that this was her favorite place to be. Even just the mere act of him trying to comfort her by bringing her to this special place warmed her heart.

But what was it that she was upset about? That was the funniest part, she didn't even really know. Sure, she missed Will, and she was anxious about her baby. But that didn't warrant the crushing anxiety and dread she was feeling right now. She instantly felt bad that she had forced all this onto Halt at such an early hour.