The next morning, Will was up before the sun yet again and was practicing a move that Gilan had taught him.

Gilan had said that Halt fell for it every time. Will practiced it while Halt was away, so he wouldn't be able to block it when Will finally used it in sparring. Will put in a few moves around it and soon he became shadow sparring.

Suddenly he stopped, and turned to see that Ryvira had just come out the door. He pulled his bow over his shoulder and walked back into the cottage and began to make breakfast.

"I saw you practicing." Ryvira said.

Will made a grunting noise that he considered a proper response to something that wasn't a question. He carried two plates of eggs and bacon back to the table. They ate in silence.

Ryvira seemed to be getting used to the idea that silence was normal here. Will was glad.

Halt and he sometimes went hours without speaking to each other, and it never bothered them. Well, it bothered Will at first, but it didn't take him long to get used to it.

It just depended on Halt's mood. Sometimes, when he was in a talkative mood, he would tell Will stories about when he trained Gilan.

A lot of them were funny. Gilan was quite the jester and Halt... well, he just wasn't.

A lot of the stories were about Gilan trying to mess with Halt, and then Halt managing to make it into a lesson. In hind sight, Will wondered just how long Halt had been considering this. Had he been preparing Will for this? How had Halt known so far in advance that there was going to be a meeting of some sort? Was there a meeting? If not, where was Halt? A lot of questions flooded Will's mind. A lot of them that begged answer, but found none.

He thought over these while he washed the dishes and Ryvira dried them.

"A penny for your thoughts?" She asked.

"I'm trying to decide if you're ready." Will answered.

"Ready for what?" Ryvira asked.

"Nothing." Will said dismissively, "You'll see soon enough." Will could tell Ryvira wanted to know more, but she kept her curiosity to herself. They were nearly finished when Ryvira said, "You don't want me here."

"Not yet." Will said, "But I will."

"You look young enough to be an apprentice yourself." Ryvira commented.

"Is that so?" Will said, raising an eyebrow.

She was right of course, but Halt had told Will to make sure that, for the week, she was to think he was a ranger. Will was uncomfortable with the idea, pretending to be a ranger, but it did make sense. She didn't say anything else.

Ryvira helped Will clean up the cottage then went to bed. This repeated for two more days before something new happened.

When Ryvira woke up that morning, Will was outside with Tug, saddling him up.

"What's going on?" Ryvira asked.

"We're going to take a little trip." Will said, "You're ready for the next step."

Ryvira didn't ask what it was, but Will could tell she wanted to know. "Breakfast is on the stove, eat then get ready to go. The pack mare is lame, we'll be riding double back."

Ryvira nodded briskly and headed inside.

Will ran his hand along Tug's neck, trying to brush the dust out of his coat while at the same time relaxing himself. Will wished he could talk to Halt, ask him how to handle all this.

But Will was on his own. He was relying on his own experiences and expertise, which, he thought bitterly, were limited.

He didn't show his thoughts though. His face remained unreadable. He went inside and readied himself. He put on his cloak and his pendant, then went to check on Ryvira.

She was just about finished doing up the dishes from her meal. Will helped her finish then mounted Tug. He held out his hand and assisted Ryvira on mounting behind him.

Tug was fidgety, unused to having two riders.

Will needed only put a hand on the horse to calm him. After riding in silence for an hour they arrived. An old man came out of a small farm house next to a field.

"Halt! Haven't seen you in awhile, how have you been?" The man said. Will pulled back his hood revealing himself.

"It's me Old Bob." Will said, "Halt had business elsewhere."

"And you must be Ryvira." Old Bob said.

"Nice to meet you sir." Ryvira replied.

"Looks like you got yourself a mirror Will!" Old Bob said, "You said the same thing back when you first met me! You're growing up to be quite the ranger I'm told."

Will was surprised for a moment, but managed to hide it with a slight smile. 'Halt must have briefed him.' Will thought.

"Now with an apprentice of your own," Old Bob said, "Boy, your daddy would be proud of you! I heard some stories in town the other day and-"

"You know they exaggerate them Old Bob." Will said, "Most of them haven't a grain of truth left."

"Still, they's good stories." Old Bob shrugged, "What you came for is out back, 'less of course you came just for a visit?"

"She's ready Old Bob." Will confirmed.

Old Bob let out a piercing whistle and one horse came running through the field. It was shaggy, short, and stubby. A ranger horse through and through.

"We came here for a horse?" Ryvira asked.

"Your horse." Will corrected, "Her Name is Marie." Ryvira looked out to the horse, appraising it for a moment. Will expected her to comment on it's height, but she didn't.

"Can I pet her?" She asked.

"She's your horse." Will said.

Ryvira walked to the fence and reached a hand out and pet the horse, bringing her finger tips down the nose.

"First step in owning a horse," Will said, "Is catching it. Release her Bob."

Bob sighed and took off the lead rope he had only just snapped on. The horse jogged off happily into the field.

Ryvira looked at Will, then at the horse, then back at Will.

"Go get her." Will prompted.

Ryvira climbed over the fence then watched the horse trot across the meadow. She didn't try to chase Marie as Will had Tug.

Ryvira just stood there, watching her.

Her eyes followed the horse, calmly moving from place to place. Ryvira caught sight of the apple barrel for a moment, and Will could tell she considered the idea, but apparently decided against it. She looked back to the horse. After a few minute of watching the horse, she muttered, "Smart horse."

Another minute or so passed before she stepped out and held out her arm. A few seconds later, Marie came trotting up and stopped right in front of her.

"Good girl." Ryvira said. She muttered soothingly to the horse and easily put on the halter. She pet the Marie's nose and neck, and the horse whinnied happily. Will managed to keep his facial expressions in check, but Old Bob couldn't hide his surprise.

"She's a natural, she is!" Old Bob said, "I ain't never seen anyone take to horse that quickly!"

"It's a start." Will said, looking on grudgingly.

"Old Bob will teach you how to look after her and her tack. I'll be back in a few hours."

"Will you be staying here tonight?" Old Bob asked.

"Depends on the aptitude she shows for riding." Will said, "If she's good enough, we'll leave at four thirty. That should get us home in time for Supper."

"Alrighty!" Old Bob said cheerfully, "Let's get started Miss!"

Will watched as Old Bob and Ryvira led Marie out to the barn. Will remounted Tug and took off at a canter toward town. There were a few things he needed to pick up. First he stopped by the seamstress that the rangers used to make their cloaks. Will picked up one he judged to be the right size for Ryvira. His next stop was the market; he needed to get a bit of sugar.

When he had done this he rode back into the woods. He walked Tug, wanting to take his time. Will finally understood Halt's appreciation of solitude. He reflected on his actions over the past few days and decided that while he had done well, he could do better.

He also decided that he should spend more of his focus on Ryvira, so for the rest of the ride he tried to decide what he would teach her, and in what order he would teach it. Halt was due back in 2 days, but that was still long enough for Ryvira to learn quite a bit. He decided he needed to work more on moving silently and invisibly, as those seemed to be her weak points. She did above average with the bow, and her combat skills were above average as well. 'She would have made a good battle school apprentice.' Thought Will, 'That would have been easier for her, but I think that with practice she'll be better at this.'

Will decided that the direct approach method of training worked better with her due to her drive and determination. Ryvira learned best from repetition. Will missed Halt. He knew he had only been gone a few days, but those few days had been stressful to Will. He had never had to teach anyone anything before, now he was expected to treat Ryvira as his own apprentice.

Will couldn't wait for Halt to come back.

For Will to become the student again, instead of teacher. Will wondered briefly if Halt ever missed being an apprentice. He dismissed the thought and attempted to focus on Ryvira again. He paused a little ways away from the farm though, trying to resume his calm and controlled manner. He rode up to see Ryvira leading Marie around.

"You got here just in time for the fun part!" Old Bob said. Ryvira came around.

"Can I ride her now?" She asked.

"If you think that's a good idea." Will said. Ryvira looked to the horse, then at Will, then back to the horse.

"It's not a good idea." She decided.

"Why not?" Will asked.

"I'm missing something." Ryvira said. Old Bob looked impressed.

"Observant little critter, ain't she?" He muttered.

"Runner. Marie's code word is runner." Will answered, ignoring Old Bob. "Whisper it to her before you mount."

Ryvira whispered the word to Marie and mounted the horse. She first set off in a walk before speeding to a trot, then a canter, and then a full gallop. Will watched her ride and listened as Old Bob called out tips.

Will allowed his thought to float away again, thinking of different techniques to teach Ryvira.

After about an hour, Will decided that it was time to leave.

"We need to be getting back." Will said to Old Bob. Will let out a piercing whistle, and Marie trotted up to him with Ryvira on her back. "Time to go." Will said.

He opened the gate and let Ryvira and Marie out of the pasture. Will mounted Tug.

"Thanks Old Bob." Will said, "We'll have to come just for a visit sometime."

"I'll be looking forward to it." Old Bob said, "Just see if you can't take Halt with you next time. I haven't seen him in quite awhile."

Ryvira and Will rode back to their cottage then got started on supper. Will sweetened the tea a bit more than usual, an unofficial celebration of Ryvira's milestone. Halt had done the same for Will. They ate, Will taught her how to use a compass and how to read a map, then they cleaned up, and Ryvira went to bed.

Will stayed up another hour, rocking in Halt's chair. Will knew that Halt wasn't due for another two days, but he was worried anyway.

Something in Will told him that something bad wrong was either happening, or going to be.

Halt would have told him to stop being a worry wart, but Will was starting to get jittery. He ended up reading from one of Halt's history books until he fell asleep.

A/N: I need reviews! Give me reviews! I need them to know if I'm doing well or not. Suggestions are welcome!