#alyss mainwiring

[rangerangel]

Whatever you do, don't think about the fact that as Will watched Jory Ruhl burn to death, he got a front row seat to exactly how much agony Alyss experienced as she died. Don't think about the fact that he dreams of it every night for years afterwards, and can remember the smell of a burning body every time he sees a campfire.

[rangerangel]

Imagine the moment that Will realized he would be part of the Rangers for the rest of his life… I imagine that his heart would swell up and he would know that even as an orphan he found his true family. Apprentice era Will has my whole heart!

[rangerangel]

One day I’ll redraw this cleaner, but I needed to put some more Wilyss into the world since the source painting was bouncing around my head

source

[rangerangel]

oooh how about some soft Halt giving Will marriage advice??

Here ya go, Anon <3

Halt looked down at the notes in his hands and sighed. Will was pacing. Again. To be clear, Will had been pacing on and off for about three days now, and he always seemed to do it precisely when Halt needed to get something done. He tried to turn his attention back to the notes he so desperately needed to read, when a long drawn out sigh reached his ears from across the room. Halt slammed the papers down on the kitchen table. “WHAT?” he roared, a little louder than he meant to.

Will looked up with a slightly stunned expression. “Huh?” he said, tilting his head. He looked like a big dumb puppy, Halt thought, a bit uncharitably.

“You’re pacing. Why.” Halt gritted out through his teeth.

His old apprentice shrugged slightly. “I didn’t realize, sorry. I’ll stop.” Will flopped down on the bench by the cabin door and started bouncing his knee. He gnawed on the end of one finger and stared out aimlessly into space. Halt did not return to his notes, and instead watched Will with one eyebrow raised. Sure enough, less than 60 seconds went by before Will hopped to his feet and started pacing again. Halt buried his gray head in his hands and groaned.

“Will. Please. I have never asked you to open your mouth before, but I’m begging you. What the hell has got you so worked up?” Will slid into the seat across the table from him and twisted a long strand of hair around his finger. Halt could see the worry written clearly across his face, and decided to wait patiently for the young man to form his thoughts. Well, as patiently as he could manage.

Finally Will said in a soft voice, “How do you be a good husband?”

Halt was floored. “What?” he managed to sputter.

“How do you be a good husband? And don’t give me any of the bullshit like ‘your wife is always right’ or ‘know when to shut up’ or ‘plug your ears’ or any of the stuff that old people say. I want to be a good husband to Alyss. I want to be a good dad to our kids one day. But our wedding is less than a month away and I realized I have ab- solutely no idea how to do either of those things. I don’t want her to wake up in a few years and realize she could have done so much better than me. Or that the person she chose actually has no idea how to be a family after all. You and Pauline are an amazing couple; you never fight. How do you do it?”

Halt waited a few seconds to see if Will was done speaking. His old apprentice was studying the table intently, with the slightest hint of red around his ears and neck. Halt sighed, running his hand over his face and beard. Then abruptly, he got up and closed the distance between them. He pulled Will close to him in a hug, and the younger man let his head rest on his mentor. Halt could feel the tension radiating through his young body, and gently patted the brown curls. After a minute or so, he gently pulled back and looked Will in the eyes.

“First of all, I want you to know that you do know how to be a family. You’ve been a son to me for almost a decade now. You’re intelligent, kind, and pretty damn funny when you want to be. And it’s my personal opinion that Alyss couldn’t have found a better man in all of Araluen. No, the whole damn continent.” Halt saw Will’s eyes start to well with tears, and he gently wiped them away with his rough fingers.

“Also, Pauline and I do fight. Not often, and rarely harshly. But we argue just like any other couple. Two weeks ago we got into an argument about whether or not Hibernian could be counted as rhotic language or not. It was stupid, and I still slept on the couch because of it.” He rubbed his back slightly, wincing at the memory of that morning. “Being a good husband isn’t about never fighting or being perfect. In fact, I have it on good authority that being married to a perfect person would be downright miserable. Imagine if Alyss was never wrong! No, Will. Being a good husband boils down to one main thing. Listen to what she tells you. Alyss is an articulate and intelligent young lady. Don’t guess what she wants—ask her and really listen to her answer. As long as you keep your ears and mind open, you two will do just fine together.”

Will sighed and lowered his head. “It just feels like it couldn’t be that easy. How do so many marriages fall apart if all it takes is listening?”

Halt barked out a laugh. “How many people do you know that actually listen to each other? I remember a certain apprentice who had to be told how to do something five times before he finally got the memo!”

His old apprentice smiled begrudgingly, “I guess you’re right. I really care about her, Halt.”

The older man smiled and gently clapped his boy on the back. “Then I’d say you’re exactly where you need to be. Now how about you let me get back to this work and you stop worrying about foolish things, son?”

Will picked up his bow and began to wax his bowstring. A few minutes of easy silence went by before Will said, “Hey, Halt? Was Pauline right, by the way? About the rhotic language thing.”

He looked up as he saw the face of his mentor darken slightly. “Tell you what, Will. An extra tip for your marriage: know when to shut up.”

[rangerangel]

Will’s Singing Voice

Been thinking a lot about how Will might sound when singing with his mandola, and I think I found an artist that matches what’s in my imagination. Obviously this is only my opinion, but it just hits right for me. That being said, imagine Will singing this next to the campfire in a dark wood to his friends and loved ones, after a successful mission. 

Here for those without Spotify.

[rangerangel]

Growing up is realizing that the Ranger’s Apprentice series has 14 books and never once passes the Bechdel test... Nor does the Royal Ranger series. I’m planning a masterpost on how Jan Flonogen writes women, but just.. it’s one of the only parts of the books that hurts the worst

[rangerangel]

I take art requests!

I’ll work my way up to commissions, but for now I’m just brainrotting over these characters and I will literally draw anybody for you so just drop it in my ask and I’ll do some sketchy sketches.