Halt's Ranger Apprentices- John Flanagan Ranger Apprentice fan-fiction

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO:

It was Harvest Day and Annabelle (who is Squirt, but is now called Anabelle after she found out that was going to be her name) quickly munched a mouth full of egg and left. Halt tried to get her to relax and eat all her breakfast but she refused and said she had too much work to do at the fair grounds, where the Harvest Day was being hosted at. Halt told her that she was a princess now and she didn't have to do it all anymore, but she refused and said that, her life didn't want to change, jut because she was royal. Halt thought that it was pretty reasonable, she was never that sort of person to get servants doing what she wanted them to do. When she got there everyone stared at her with great awe. Word had go around that the first girl ranger was a royal. The thing that made her more extrordinairy was that she wasn't one until a couple of weeks ago and was the heir to the throne of Araluen. She rolled her eyes after the seventh hand shake with a villager. She hated the spot light and hated all the stares she was getting. Like any ranger, she prefferred to be in the shadows and out of sight. Although, it was a public holiday and she was free from doing any training for being a ranger, she still wore her mottled cloak. She got to the gair grounds just after 9:00 and already it was full of people. She was going to ride Beauty there but she knew that it would be hard enough for a lone person to get through the crowd let alone a horse and person.

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It was noon, when Annabelle finally got a break. She had been flat off her feet trying to look for supplies for Halt and making sure that there was no one making a nuisance out of themselves at the same time. Annabelle slumped on a chair at the eating area and had sense someone was behind her. She suddenly stood up, whiping around at the same time to see Sir Rodney there. He was trying to creep up on her.

"Damn!" He said, "That ranger training is paying off! I use to alwasy be able to do that to you and scare the begibbas out of you!" Annabelle smiled

"I learn from the best" she said cheerfully. Rodney nodded.

It' s good to see you happy" he said "I know that it musn't have been good, finding out that you were really a royal, which by the way, congratulations!" he said. Squirt nodded

"It was hard for me a first" she said sitting back down on the chair, Rodney sitting next to her. "But I learned to forgive" she said. Rodney smiled and shook his head in amazement

"You really are one of the greatest and nicest person I have ever met....Uh... What's your name again?" Annabelle smiled at the compliment

"My real name is Annabelle, but you can keep calling me Squirt, I don't really mind" Rodney nodded, filing the name in his brain

"Annabelle eh?" he said "I like it" he said. Suddenly there was a screeching neighing over in the direction of the courtyard and both Rodney and Annabelle simultaneously stood up and started running towards the sound. When Rodney and Annabelle rouded a bend to the courtyard, they took in the situation. Annabelle gasped in surprise. It was Tug rearing up on all fours. They was a figure that was flung off the saddle. Annabelle knew who it was. It was Horace. She saw Will standing by Tug, not bothering to see if Horace was ok. Then suddenly Horace picked up a stick and started toward Tug. Seeing this, Annabelle ran as fast as she could to help Tug. When she was half way there Will lunged at Horace and they started puching each other on the ground. Annabelle suddenly saw a figure next to her in peripheral vision and saw Rodney running with her. His face was red with crossness. When the reached the two boys, Rodney grabbed Will by the collar. Horace, who was on the ground, panted for breath. Annabelle pulled Horace to his feet, holding both his arms behind his back in an iron hard grip. Horace went wide-eyed realising that Sir Rodney was holding Will by the collar. He turned around to see who was hold him to see Annabelle holding him. He gasped in shock.