Sparks Flying - A Ranger's Apprentice Story

Chapter Four

The group of children led Halt and Will to the largest cottage in the community - although largest, Will thought wryly, was a relative term.

The cottage was a square, single-story structure made of roughly hewn lumber and roofed with straw thatch. A smoking mud-brick chimney leaned against the right-hand side of the cottage. Will shuddered at the flammability of the structure.

The leader of the children - Will had heard the other children call her Liza - stopped and pointed at the front door of the cottage. "She's in there," Liza said. "In the back room. That's Madge's house." Noticing Will's blank look, she added, "Madge is the healer."

By now, the other children had scattered, either to their play or to various household or farm chores. Only Liza remained, hanging back shyly as Will dismounted and knocked on the front door.

The door slowly creaked open, and a bent, white-haired old woman peered suspiciously out at them.

"Who are you?" she asked. "What do you want?"

Will opened his mouth to answer her, but Halt beat him to the punch.

"Good day, ma'am," he said politely. "My name is Ranger Halt, and this is Ranger Will Treaty. We're here to see Lady Alyss Treaty, Ranger Will's wife."

The old woman gave Halt an approving look, then turned her hard stare on Will, looking him up and down. She seemed to radiate disapproval. 

In his life, Will had faced down Wargals, criminals, highly trained warriors, and even the Kalkara. He decided that this grumpy old woman might be the toughest opponent he'd ever face.

The woman finally spoke. "So you're Ranger Will." Her tone also conveyed her disfavor. "I expected someone taller."

In his peripheral vision, Will could see Halt smirking. Will cleared his throat nervously. "Um, yeah...I get that a lot."

The old lady leveled her withering gaze at Will again, letting him squirm for a few more seconds. Then she finally relented, her face softening slightly as she pulled the door open wider.

"Come in," she said. "Alyss is waiting for you."

Inside, the cottage was dark and smoky. An upside-down garden of drying herbs sprouted from the ceiling. Despite the warm weather outside, a fire roared in the fireplace underneath a huge pot of boiling liquid.

The old lady hobbled toward a door on the other side of the room, beckoning the Rangers after her. Halt and Will followed her through the doorway into another, smaller room. This room was considerably cleaner than the main room. The wooden shutters of the single window were propped open, allowing a fresh airflow through the room. The room itself was sparsely furnished, with a rickety wooden table under the window and a bed in the corner. 

"Alyss!" Will exclaimed, crossing the room in three steps and falling to his knees next to the low cot. His wife was sitting up in bed, leaning back against the pillow.

Smiling, Alyss took his hand and accepted his kiss, but she didn't address him. Instead, she spoke to the old woman. "You didn't scare them away, Madge?"

The old healer smiled fondly at Alyss. Will wasn't surprised his wife had charmed the prickly old woman. Everybody loved Alyss.

"Nope," Madge replied, the corners of her eyes crinkling up as she grinned at the injured Courier. "I almost drove the young one off, though."

Alyss squeezed Will's hand. "I'm glad you didn't, Madge," she said. "He is my husband, after all."

Will took a moment to look Alyss over anxiously. Her face was pale, and her right arm was held in a sling against her chest. Both of her forearms were wrapped from wrist to elbow in linen bandages. Her voice was low and raspy - probably from the smoke, Will thought.

He burst out, "What happened to your hair?"

"I'm almost killed on a mission, and the first thing you ask about is my hair?" Alyss said, pretending to be annoyed. She was so relieved to see Will that she couldn't be mad at him. Not yet, anyway.

Her long, beautiful blonde hair was gone, cut in varying choppy lengths around her face. Will reached out to touch it, gently tucking a strand that had fallen in her face behind her ear.

"It was burned off, Will," Alyss said softly.

Suddenly needing to be closer to her, Will rose, turning to sit on the bed next to her. He slipped a protective arm around her shoulders, careful of her injured arm. She leaned against him, resting her head on his shoulder.

"I'm so glad you're here," Alyss whispered.

"Me, too," Will agreed in a low voice. He turned his head to kiss her forehead.

"Before you turn into a lovebird, Alyss, I'm here too!" Halt's indignant voice broke in, shattering the moment.

Alyss broke into a smile despite herself. "Hello, Halt," she said. "It's so good to see you."

Halt wasn't normally one for being gushy and emotional, but he had apparently decided to put all of that aside for a few minutes. He stepped up to the edge of Alyss's bed, leaning down to take her uninjured hand a squeeze it comfortingly. His eyes shone with conviction.

"Hang in there, sweetheart. We'll get you home soon."