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The clearing around Halt’s little cabin had never been so filled with noise. Voices mingled with laughter and the joyful tunes Berrigan played on his gitarra. If this had been any other event, Halt would have left by now. Too many people and too many sounds had never been his thing, but today he gladly put up with it. It was Will’s graduation after all.
Seeing his apprentice — or, former apprentice now — celebrating with his friends, a big smile on his face and sparkles in his eyes, filled him with pride. His boy had come far. In his five years of apprenticeship, Will had already been through more than most rangers did in their entire career, and still he managed to find joy in every day, his laugh always returning. No matter what life threw at him, Will kept fighting, kept training, kept living. In Halt’s eyes, no one was more deserving of that silver oak leaf than him.
Will caught his eyes, and his smile brightened. Halt saw no point in stopping the corners of his mouth from quirking up. His apprentice deserved to see he was proud of him. Will came up to him, practically bouncing on his feet as he did so, and then he suddenly threw his arms around him, squeezing his mentor in a hug.
‘What’s that for?’ Halt grumbled.
Will pulled away and smirked. ‘Can I not give my dearest mentor a hug whenever I feel like it?’
That earned him a playful swat on the head. ‘Don’t start getting too touchy now. You’re going to move to another fief soon, can’t have you missing me too much.’
Will snorted. ‘Who knows, maybe Crowley sends me to a fief next to Redmont. Then I can visit and hug you every week.’
‘Just when I thought I’d be done with you.’
‘Admit it, you love me.’
‘Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Aren’t you supposed to be playing with your friends instead of plaguing me with your lovey-dovey feelings?’
Will rolled his eyes, but the quirk of his mouth betrayed that he was everything but offended. ‘Alright, I’ll be going then.’ He turned back around and joined Horace, who immediately offered him a plate filled to the brim with Jenny’s pastries.
Halt would never in a thousand years admit that his throat closed up and his eyes started pricking as he thought of what his life would look like now. He had gotten so used to Will’s endless questions, his cheeky remarks, his enormous energy. Way too soon, his apprentice would have his own fief, and Halt would be alone again. Secretly, he hoped that Will would indeed be placed not too far from Redmont. The thought of not being able to see his boy for longer than a few weeks felt unbearable. As he sat pondering, he vaguely registered Crowley appearing beside him. His friend placed a hand on his shoulder and lightly squeezed. ‘I know what you’re thinking,’ the commandant said, ‘but you’re going to have to let him go.’
‘I know,’ Halt whispered back. ‘Doesn’t mean that I have to like it.’
‘No, but you can’t protect him forever.’
‘Who’s saying that’s the only reason I want to keep him close?’ Halt admitted.
Crowley chuckled. ‘Oh my, are you getting soft on your old day?’
‘I’m not old.’
‘Tell that to our grey hairs.’
‘Those are stress-related.’
‘Fine, if that’s what you like to tell yourself.’ Crowley gently bumped his shoulder. ‘Doesn’t change the fact that you’re acting like a dad scared to sent his kid out in the big world.’
Halt fell silent for a moment. When he spoke up again, his voice was nothing more than a murmur. ‘Well, maybe that’s because I am.’