The Icebound Land- Character Reaction

15

Halt raised an eyebrow as he heard his friend's voice talking loudly, even for Crowley. "What's going on?" he asked as he opened the door. To his surprise, it was only the other three Rangers in the room. "For a group of Rangers, you make enough racket for one knight."

Crowley shot him a scowl. "I can't find my oakleaf."

Halt raised an eyebrow, unconcerned. "Who's to say you didn't displace it?"

"I had it last night," his friend replied shortly. "And it's gone now. I didn't take it off, either."

Will sighed and threw his hands in the air. "It's not in here, Crowley. I don't know where it's at, but it's not here."

"What's going on?" Halt turned as the rest of the crew began filtering in, the Herons with a curious expression on their faces.

"Crowley misplaced his oakleaf," he said in answer to Cassandra's question. Crowley glared at him.

"I didn't misplace it! I never took it off, and now it's gone!"

Halt rolled his eyes and glanced over at the other two Rangers. To his surprise, Gilan wore a slightly suspicious look as he turned to face the newcomers.

"Jesper?" the Ranger said, and a light of recognition lit in Hal's eyes as he turned to his crewmate.

"Jesper..." The Skandian didn't even bother to hide his smirk as he reached out his hand, a silver oakleaf on a chain dangling from his fingers.

Crowley stared at him, dumbfounded. "What...? How... when...?"

"Yesterday afternoon, actually." He tossed the necklace towards the Ranger, who snatched at it, his hand covering it protectively.

The rest of the Ranger instinctively reached for their own oakleaves, reassured when the cold metal touched their hand. Hal sighed and shook his head.

"I'm sorry," he said, shooting Jesper a glare. Crowley merely shook his head once more and turned away.

"Wulf, it's your turn to read." Hal slid the book over to whom he assumed was Wulf—apparently, he was correct, because the twin didn't correct him.

FOLLOWING THE FAILED ESCAPE ATTEMPT, WILL AND EVANLYN were forbidden to move more than fifty meters from the huts. Will and Cassandra snorted. There was no more running, no more exercising. Erak managed to find a new range of tasks for the two captives to undertake, from reweaving the rope mattresses in the dormitory to resealing the lower planks along Wolfwind's hull with tar and pieces of frayed rope. It was hot, unpleasant work, but Evanlyn and Will accepted it philosophically. Halt gave Will a slight nod, who flushed with pleasure.

Confined in this fashion, they couldn't help noticing the growing tension between the two groups of Skandians. Slagor and his men, bored and seeking distraction, had called loudly for the two Araluens to be flogged. Slagor, licking his wet lips, had even offered to carry out the task himself.

Halt clenched his jaw, his eyes darkening. They all knew Slagor had been a traitor, but he hadn't known that the drunken skirl had threatened to lay a hand on his apprentice.

Erak, very bluntly, told Slagor to mind his own business. He was becoming increasingly weary of the sneering, bragging manner in which Slagor conducted himself, and of the sly way his men cheated and taunted the crew of Wolfwind at every opportunity. Slagor was a coward and a bully, and when Erak compared him to the two captives, he was surprised to find that he had more in common with Will and Evanlyn than with his countryman. "That's surprising?" Will asked, an eyebrow raised. Erak shrugged. He held no grudge against them for their attempted escape. He would have tried the same thing in their place. Now to have Slagor baying after their hides for his own warped amusement somehow brought Erak closer to them.