Note, 12/25/05: I took a few lines out near the end of this chapter because I didn't want Mal to say "now he probably won't ever want to go out with me" or whatever I had her say. I did that cause I don't Mal to 'like' like Wade just yet. I want it to dawn on her later in the story. So, as of now she just likes him as a friend. If there are other parts in other chapters that strongly suggest that Mal 'like' likes Wade, please let me know so I can get rid of them. So, to sum this up Mal likes Wade as a friend, but Wade 'like' likes Mal as possibly more than a friend. Does that make sense?

WOW! I finally updated! I hope you like it.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of Narnia--it all belongs to Lewis

THE BLACK FIRE

Chapter 6

Arguments and Apologies

"And this is my friend Whimbeldon." Whimbeldon stretched out one of his pudgy hands and grasped Wade's hand and shook it violently. Then grabbed Mallory's and did the same. Matt, Mallory, and Wade had just walked down to the dining hall and had an extravagant meal and were being introduced to some of Matt's friends and colleagues that were also guests at Cair Paravel. Whimbeldon was one of them.

"It's, um, very nice to meet you, Whimbeldon," Mallory struggled to say politely and cast Wade a glance which meant he should greet him also.

"Yes, it's a pleasure."

"Naw, the pleasure's all mine. Look, I'd like to stay and chat, but I must track down a companion of mine. We have some unfinished business to attend to. In fact there she is now."

All their eyes shifted to where Whimbeldon's gaze was fixed, only to find an extremely tall woman with red hair standing near the doors of the dining hall. Whimbeldon began to frantically wave his arms in the air.

"Dee-mee-tra," he sang as his short legs carried him to Demetra as fast as they could. When Whimbeldon was out of earshot, Mallory was the first to speak.

"What a," Mallory paused as she searched for the right word, "pleasant man."

"Oh, you get used to him. He's really a nice fellow."

"Right…," Wade commented under his breath, as they began to dodge their way through the crowded hall. How many people are in here? He thought. It was nearly impossible to tell. Mallory was beginning to wonder the same thing when she stumbled over the hem of her dress and seconds later a strange man bumped into her, nearly causing her to loose her balance. The man looked up at Mallory,

"Excuse me, Miss. I wasn't watching where--" The man stopped abruptly and Mallory realized that this black-haired man was staring at something on the front of her dress. She then got a disgusted look on her face. What a perverted man! Why I should slap him across the face! She was deciding whether she should do just that when she looked at the front of her dress, and realized he was staring at the medallion Matt had given her. The teenager slowly raised her eyes, surveying this man, when they looked at his eyes. They were filled with greed. The man seemed to be in a daze, then he suddenly snapped back to reality. "Where did you get that?" he questioned. His hand slowly started to move toward the medallion. Mallory quickly clasped it firmly between her hands and hurried away to find her two friends. She wondered if she had been a bit too rude, but she just wanted to get away from that man. She came to find the others in the hallway. Matt was talking politics with a heavy set man standing a few paces away from the doorway. Wade, however, was found near the corner, fiddling with one of the roses that he had taken out of the vase that was sitting on the table.

"Wade!" Mallory exclaimed as she approached him. Wade was startled and spun around, bumping into the table and dropping the yellow rose. She stifled a laugh as Wade picked the rose up off the floor and put it back into the vase.

"Where did you go?"

"I was still in the hall. This very strange man bumped into me," Mallory began and told Wade the whole ordeal.

"Don't you think you should tell Matt?"

"It's not that big of deal. I'm just curious as to who he is."

"Who, who is?" asked Matt. The other two were so busy talking, they didn't realize Matt had finished his conversation and came up to them.

"This man that I bumped into. He had black hair that was pulled back into a pony tail, small dark eyes, and a hoop earring in one year, and…"

"I believe that would have been Broady. I honestly don't know much about the man. I don't even know where he lives."

"Hmm, oh well." Mallory was trying to brush the subject aside. "What should we do next?"

"How about we go and visit Victory?"

"Alright, let's go."

Matt was in the lead as they took a stroll out to the stables. The king walked up to the stable door and opened it, motioning for Wade and Mallory to enter first. The inside of the stable looked marvelous. It was a royal stable alright! The building was constructed of red mahogany and had, of course, flags with Aslan embroidered on them, fluttering in the light wind. On the inside all the horse's stalls had the rather large resident's name engraved on a golden plate attached to their door. There were about 16 in all.

"Mallory, freeze!" Wade said. She was just about to put her foot down.

"Oh, how nice…they left us some presents."

"Perhaps this wasn't the best idea," suggested Matt, "Maybe we should have gone to the gardens."

"No, really. It's fine."

"Only if you're sure, Mallory."

The friends continued to walk down the hall formed between the stalls. They stopped at the 7th stall on the right hand side. There stood Victory, as beautiful as ever, and was obviously happy to have some visitors. He had the blackest of black hair, and his mane and tail were trimmed to perfection. His big brown eyes seemed peaceful and understanding, yet mysterious, like they could look right into our soul.

"Hey, Victory! You good ol' boy." Victory reached his head over the stall door and nuzzled Matt's hand. Matt then turned to face the others, and he began to speak in a hushed voice. "Alright, the real reason I brought you both here: when do you plan on going home?" Those words seemed to be like a brick of cold ice that suddenly struck the two Americans. "It's not that I want you to leave so soon, but your sudden appearance at Cair Paravel has raised many questions, and I'm beginning to run out of lies to answer them."

"I think we should leave tonight."

"Hey," Mallory protested, "who says you get to make all the decisions, Wade? What if I want to stay a little longer, huh?"

"And why shouldn't I be? After all, I am six months older than you."

The king took a step back and ran his hand through his brown hair. He knew what was about to happen and there was no way he could stop it.

'So! People younger than you can make wonderful decisions, such as myself."

Wade knew she was right. She was a good decision maker and an awesome leader. How could he make Mallory realize he was right? He wanted to get home; there was just something that made him want to leave. Like something bad was going to happen.

"Maybe, but I am a man."

"What's that supposed to mean? I'm a girl, so what?" Mallory then gasped. "That is so sexist!"

Again, Wade knew Mallory was right. He probably shouldn't have said that. It did make him sound like he was being sexist. But, yet he still felt like he had to make Mallory believe he was right--that they should leave tonight.

"Ah, but I am taller."

"That doesn't mean a thing! I'm proud of being short!" Mallory was beginning to get very angry with Wade. He was acting so lame. She rolled her eyes. Five foot three isn't all that short! I mean, what is he? Five foot six? Seven? Then a sly smile appeared on Wade's face. Mallory was right, again. But he had one last idea.

"Perhaps, but I am smarter."

"Oh, yeah? So what! I'm--" Mallory's jaw dropped open, and narrowed her eyes at Wade. She took a big step toward him, so their faces were merely inches apart. "I amso not falling for that!" Mallory had just destroyed Wade's last idea. "You think you're so smart! I know how your mind works!"

Wade stifled a laugh. "You don't even know how your mind works."

"Uh!" The furious blond interjected, and moved a couple inches closer to this male that was making her so angry, putting her hands on her hips. Now there was barely two inches of Narnian air separating their faces. They could feel the warm breath of the other caressing their faces.

"Whoa! Are you going to kiss me or something?" Mallory gave a small squeal, put her hands on Wade's chest, and pushed him back so they weren't so close. She had the last straw, and was about to admit defeat.

"Frankly, I would much rather kiss the horse," she spat, stormed down the hall, and out the stable door, nearly tripping on a bag of feed on her way out. She slammed the door so hard it surprised Victory who snorted and stamped his feet a few times. Matt gave a nervous laugh. That was worse than he predicted it to be.

"Well…I guess it's settled then. We'll leave at sunset."

It was about 7:00 and everyone was getting ready for their departure. Mallory was changing into the clothes she had arrived in Narnia in: a hot pink and white track jacket, stone washed jeans, and white running shoes. She just pulled on her track jacket, and zipped it up, when she sat down on the edge of the bed covered with a silky canary yellow comforter. She still didn't want to go home, but she couldn't stay in Narnia forever. She'd have to go home eventually. Jeeze, Wade must think I'm an ass after how I acted this afternoon. Mallory was no longer mad at Wade, she was mad at herself for overreacting. She forced herself a grim smile and sighed, trying to push the events of the afternoon from her head when another entered. Matt! She was going to miss him so much. She had only known him for barely a day, but he was beginning to feel like the brother she lost. The hole in her heart was slowly beginning to mend, only to be ripped apart again. The 14 year old girl stood up, and walked over to the full length mirror lined up against one of the walls. She looked at her reflection, wiped a tear off her cheek, and straightened her shirt. I guess I should go find Wade then. But much to Mallory's surprise when she opened her door Wade was already there waiting. Wade watched as she shut the door, and the lantern that was always kept burning in each room, be shut out of view.

"Mallory…"

"Wade, wait. I'm really sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you like I did. I overreacted. I'm sorry. Can you forgive me?" Wade looked into Mallory's beautiful eyes, and could see she was truly sorry.

"It's alright. I forgive you. I'm sorry, too. I shouldn't have yelled, either. You must think I'm an ass." Mallory chuckled, remembering that she thought the same thing. "But I was just wondering why did you want to stay here so badly?"

"Oh, I don't know. Narnia is just so great. It's magical; I guess I just got caught up in this world and didn't want to go back to my own," Mallory lied. This wasn't the real reason.

"Yeah. This place is pretty magical." There was an uneasy silence between them. Then Mallory saw what Wade had in his hand--the flashlight.

"Wade, I left my medallion on my dresser. I'm going to grab it, ok?"

"Alright," Wade answered, as she opened the door and went in, once again seeing the lantern glowing in the room. Then the door softly shut. Something just didn't seem right. A few seconds of silence passed, but they were suddenly interrupted. A hair raising scream erupted from Mallory's room. "Mallory?" Wade's heart beat began to quicken as he scrambled over to the door, and his shaking hands fumbled with the handle. He managed to turn it and pushed the door open. Something was definitely wrong. Oh, shit…

"Mallory!"

A/N: So what did you think? Hmm, what is the real reason Mallory didn't want to go back to America? What about her brother? And what just happened to her? You'll just have to wait and see………. Remember to review!