Ranger's Apprentice Quick Stories

Reunion Visit

Will and Halt saw the castle loom over them, on a hill high above. Will's spirits soared.

He and Halt had just wrapped up a mission nearby, and after hours of subtle hinting - at least, Will had thought he was being subtle - Halt had finally caved, saying they could stop by Castle Araluen on their way back to Redmont.

Halt glanced over at Will now. The boy was practically bouncing up and down in his saddle, his excitement clear on his face.

"Pipe down, will you?" Halt muttered stonily. "We'll only be here for a day."

Will tried and failed to dispel his wide grin.

"Sorry Halt," he said, his tone suggesting he wasn't the least bit sorry. "I haven't seen Horace in nearly a year, is all. I've missed him dearly."

Halt grunted. In reality, he was eager to see the young knight as well, in addition to the young Princess Cassandra. Both youths, as well as Will, had woven their way into Halt's grizzled old heart. He had missed Horace's innocent ignorance as much as his undying loyalty and bravery. Even Cassandra's stubbornness was missed by Halt.

Of course, he would never let anyone know these things.

They rode through the castle gates and into the stable, where they politely waved the stable boy off and tended to their own horses. Before Halt could even relax for one second, Will was already walking toward the castle.

"Hold it," Halt called, a little exasperated. Will turned back, afraid he'd done something wrong, but Halt only gave him a quick, annoyed glare. "Let me stretch my aching legs, will you?"

Halt bend over to stretch his thigh and calf muscles. With his eyes averted, Will took the opportunity to smirk.

"Your poor, old aching legs," he muttered under his breath.

Halt stood back up instantly and glared at Will suspiciously.

"What was that?"

Will smiled innocently.

"Nothing, Halt. Are you ready?"

Halt took one more second to study Will. He narrowed his eyes, but Will only smiled back. Finally, he grunted again, and the two made their way up the castle stairs.

Arriving at the door to Crowley's office, Halt hesitated.

"You go on and find Horace," he finally decided. Will's face lit up, and Halt actually found it difficult to repress his own smile. "I can fill Crowley in on the details this time. I'll catch up with you later."

"Thanks Halt!" Will called, but he was already bounding away.

Halt watched him go, shaking his head. "Don't mention it," he muttered, although his lips were twitching up at the corners.

It didn't take Will long to find Horace. He'd known exactly where his young friend would be. Time apart wouldn't change Horace's predictable nature. Will hovered around the open doorway of the battle arena. There were several soldiers, but as usual, none compared to the skilled young warrior who whirled and slashed and blocked and cut in the middle of the arena.

"Rest!" A commander called, and everyone dropped their swords. For a moment, Will reflected on the days when he would've given anything to be out there training to be a knight. He almost laughed at the thought now. Sir Rodney and Baron Arald had been right to deny him that request. He would've never lived through his first battle.

"Will?" a familiar voice called. Will's mind was pulled from its deep reminiscing as his face broke into a wide grin. Horace was standing, sword sheathed, gawking at him. "Is that you?"

"I'm glad to see your fame here hasn't caused you to forget your own best friend," he replied in a rather Halt-like manner. Horace ignored the tease, stepping forward to close the distance between then in just a few short strides. Then he was crushing Will in a massive bear hug.

"Can't... breathe..." Will muttered, and Horace released him.

"How have you been?" he asked eagerly. "You've gotten more muscle on you! How's Halt? Is everything at Redmont going good? How are Alyss and George and Jenny and-"

"Horace!" Will cried, holding up a hand to stop the torrent of questions. "Let me answer, would you?"

Horace smiled sheepishly. "Right," he said. "Sorry."

Will smiled in return, answering each of his friend's questions. Finally, it was his turn to ask Horace about life in Castle Araluen.

"I love it," Horace replied, genuine happiness on his face. "I'm challenged with my technique these days, which helps me improve. And Cassie makes the days even better, with-"

"Cassie?" Will asked. He raised an eyebrow, giving his friend a knowing look. Horace's cheeks flushed bright red.

"Oh, butt out," he said. "It's just what I've heard her father call her, and she said I could use it too."

Will nodded exaggeratedly. "I see," he said. "And... would Cassie have anything to do with how much you like it here?"

His mischievous grin widened as Horace shuffled his feet nervously. He glanced around.

"Maybe," he admitted. "She's an impressive person. And... she's quite... beautiful. Stunning, I'd say."

Will opened his mouth to reply, but just then, another voice called from several meters away.

"Will!"

The young Ranger's apprentice turned to see none other that Cassandra herself stepping out into view. He smiled, glancing once at Horace, who was redder than Will had ever seen him.

"Cassandra!" Will called back, stepping to meet the princess with a warm hug. "How are you?"

"Excellent! It's good to see you!"

"Good to see you too," Will replied.

"Um... Cassandra?" Horace asked nervously. His face was still considerably red. "How long were you... um... behind that wall?"

Cassandra smiled innocently, but her eyes shone in a playful manner.

"Oh... not too long I suppose. Time is a testy thing."

Will grinned along with Cassandra. Horace only nodded.

"Right," he said. But his face was already turning beat red again. This time, Will couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Oh, how I've missed you two," he said, throwing his arms around his friends and laughing once more.