The Icebound Land- Character Reaction

The Herons

A/N: This isn't part of the book, this is just the introductions of the Herons, Erak, and Svengal.

Halt knocked on the door. For a moment, nothing happened, and then his former apprentice opened the door.

He raised an eyebrow at Will. The Ranger's hair was ruffled and his eyes were slightly red, as if he hadn't slept at all.

"The Skandians are about to arrive," Halt said by way of greeting. "Alyss is worried about you."

Will only shrugged and disappeared back into the room, reappearing a moment later with his cloak hastily thrown around him and his double scabbard strapped around his waist.

"Are you sure you're alright?" he asked carefully as they approached the group outside. Will shrugged.

"I'm not looking forward to this, if that's what you're asking," he replied, a bit moodily. Halt put a hand on his shoulder.

"You don't have to stay. If it gets too hard, you are allowed to leave for a bit." Will nodded, managing a small smile.

"Row starboard oars!" shouted a loud voice. Halt looked ahead to see a slim and small—much smaller than any other wolf ship he'd seen—glide into the harbor as if on wings. Noting the sail, he vaguely remembered Gundar's new ship. The Heron design, he called it. It seemed this ship was another product of it.

He raised an eyebrow. The person shouting orders was young—perhaps a few years younger than Will, even. And the rest of the crew seemed to be around the same age, save the old, grizzled Skandian with a hook on his right arm instead of a hand.

And, of course, the Oberjarl and his first mate.

Erak grinned over at him as they landed, striding off the little boat and over to the group. Halt reeled as the Skandian clapped a hand on his back, much harder than had been intended.

"Well, if it isn't Halt!" Erak said cheerfully. Halt raised an eyebrow as he regained his balance.

"No, of course it's not me," he replied pithily. Erak found this quite hilarious, as did Svengal, who had approached from behind the Oberjarl.

Will spoke from beside him, his voice with a little of his old cheerfulness. "Erak, Svengal," he greeted. The Oberjarl grinned and enveloped him in a hug. Halt winced; he was sure he could hear his former apprentice's bones cracking.

"Erak!" Will gasped, struggling to be freed. "Let...go!"

The Oberjarl laughed again and stepped back, and Will crumpled to the ground, gasping for breath. Halt hid a smile and helped his apprentice back up.

"It's a pleasure to see you again, Oberjarl Erak," Duncan said, nodding to Erak. The Skandian nodded and grinned.

"Same to you, King," he replied. "So what's all this fuss about?" Before Duncan could reply, Erak turned back and beckoned to the other group. "Well, come on up, unless you're admiring the view!"

Halt watched as they approached. A group of eight Skandians, and a girl with dark hair. Two of the Skandians, Halt noted with some surprise, were exactly alike. Twins, he realized, and a jolt of shock ran through him.

"This," Erak said, waving a hand at them, "is the Heron Brotherband. With their flimsy boat," he added. The Skandian in front only grinned and shook his head.

"Of course, Oberjarl. Which is why so many wolfships are using that same flimsy design." Erak only snorted.

The Skandian that had spoken turned to them. He was a bit smaller than the rest of the Skandians, but he stood with an air of confidence, his eyes alight with a look that seemed to evaluate everything around him. An inventor? Halt wondered.

"My name is Hal," the Skandian said, holding out a hand. Halt took it, eyeing the young man curiously. "This is Stig—" He gestured to the Skandian beside him—"and this is Edvin, Ingvar, Lydia, Stefan, Jesper, Wulf, Ulf—"

"Hey!" one of the twins protested. "I'm Wulf! Not Ulf! He's much uglier than I am!"

"Nuh-uh!" the second twin cut in, glaring at the first. "You're far more uglier than I am! And you're lying, too! You're Ulf."

"No, you're lying!"

"No, you!"

"No, you are!"

"Boys." Hal turned to them, an eyebrow raised. "Do I need to let Ingvar take care of you?" He motioned to the giant Skandian—even for Skandian standards, he was huge. The two twins backed off immediately, shaking their heads and looking warily at the shore.

Hal sighed and turned back to Halt, a mildly exasperated look on his face. "Sorry about that. They're a bit of a handful. Oh, and this right here is—"

"Thorn Hookyhand," said the Skandian that Hal had been gesturing to. As the older Skandian spoke, he brandished the book around. Quite a creative name, Halt thought dryly.

"Well, I must say it's been a while." Gilan stepped beside him and clasped Hal's hand in greeting. The other Skandian grinned.

"Nice to see you again, Gilan." The tall Ranger smiled in return.

"I take it you're one of them Rangers?" Thorn asked, looking at Halt. Halt raised an eyebrow, but nodded.

"I'm Halt," he said, and put a hand on Will's shoulder, who had been unusually silent. "This is Will."

"The friend that could have climbed faster than you," Gilan added, grinning. Hal rolled his eyes, while Will frowned in confusion.

"What?" Gilan only laughed and shook his head.

"Ah, nothing. Don't worry about it." Will raised an eyebrow, but let it pass. He turned to Hal and smiled. "It's nice to meet you. We've heard a bit about you from Gilan here."

Hal snorted. "Nothing bad, I hope." Will chuckled.

"So, why were we called here?" Thorn asked, looking over at Duncan. Their relationship was a bit strained, to say the least—a result of Duncan insulting the Heron.

The King offered him a small smile. "Come with me," he said, motioning them towards the castle.