Well, here we are--the last few days of December and the last few of the year. I promised I'd update on the 23rd (my first day of Christmas vacation) so here it is!

Disclaimer: I do not own any of Narnia, no matter how much I want it all!

THE BLACK FIRE

Chapter 8

Matt, Love, and Death

Wade, Matt and their steeds tried to be as quiet as humanly possible with the exception of the grass crunching and twigs snapping under their feet. They were making their way to the forest surrounding Cair Paravel. Just after entering the shelter of the dense forest, they stopped and Matt told Wade his plan.

"Alright," he whispered. "Long ago a part of the Great Eastern Ocean known as Glasswater was a common place to see pirates. I figure that if Broady is really a pirate and he kidnapped Mallory, that's where he could be. It's only about 6 and a half miles away, so we'll get there in no time, and if that's where they are we'll wait til morning before we do anything so we know what we got ourselves into.

"Sounds fine to me," Wade agreed. His night vision had developed after they departed from the stables and was no adjusting again to the even darker atmosphere of the forest. He thought it was like being enveloped in a blanket of a quiet, still darkness. Wade could see the patch of moonlight near where they entered, but he felt like he was far away from safety and all alone, even though the king of Narnia and two horses were right next to him. Suddenly the feeling of paranoia you get when you feel your being watched or followed flooded over him. The American glanced around, his eye's darting from tree to tree expecting to see something, but instead saw nothing. His search ended when he heard Matt mount his horse, and expertly mounted Sampson. Wade wasn't an 'expert' rider, but he had been riding before on most of his family's summer camping trips, and he learned quickly. Matt looked in his direction and Wade nodded, signaling he was ready. The Narnian and Victory slowly began down an overgrown path, gradually picking up speed, with Wade following close behind.

Neither spoke for a very long time. Both were listening to the sound of the horses' hoofs pounding on the earth. Wade thought they had been riding for a couple of hours and was just about to mention it when Matt and his horse slowed up and unexpectedly burst through the trees and into a clearing. Silvery moonlight was covering the ground. They both were glad to be able to see clearly again.

"We'll just rest a while here, then be on our way again."

"Great," Wade said as he slid off Sampson. Moments later Matt did the same and walked over to a big oak tree. He leaned his back against its trunk and slowly slid down into a sitting position. Wade gave Sampson a reassuring pat, and then sat down next to Matt. A few minutes passed before either of them spoke.

"You worried about Mallory?" the King asked.

"Uh huh," Wade confirmed. "You?"

Matt nodded his head. "You have a thing for her, don't you?"

Wade jerked his head so he was looking at King Matt. "Huh?"

"You know, like her?"

The 14 year-old hesitated with his answer. "Maybe… Ok, yeah, why?"

Matt grinned a boyish grin. "I was just wondering. After all, it's sort of obvious."

"How?"

"Oh please," the older boy joked. "You're talking to a true professional here!"

"Ha! Professional, huh? Well, have you ever been in love?" Wade was startled when Matt didn't answer right away. He was even more startled when Matt's tone had went from jokingly to solemn in a matter of seconds.

"Yes… Her name was Juliana. We were deeply in love."

"Well, what happened? If you are in love with her why haven't I heard anything about her?" Again, Matt was slow with his response. Wade was surprised when he looked at the King's youthful face; it was still the same face, but it appeared to be filled with immense pain and grief.

"I said we were in love."

Oh, so something happened. Wade thought. Maybe I shouldn't have asked that question… He sighed. Should I just keep my mouth shut or say something? Hmm…

"Have you ever wondered what happened to my parents or why I--a 16 year-old boy--is ruling Narnia?" Matt paused, but didn't allow enough time for Wade to answer. "First I'll start with my mother, Annika. It's rather simple: I was 4 years old and she died in child birth, along with the child."

"I… I'm really sorry."

The King sighed. "I wish that was the end of it. But almost a year after my mother's death, my father, Michael--the grand King of Narnia--married the most stupid, cocky, ignorant, vile person I have ever met that was practically young enough to be my older sister! Her name was Victoria and she was some 'important' noble from Aslan-knows-where. She hated me and I returned the favor.

Wade got some pretty 'interesting' images in his head when he thought about a younger Matt terrorizing his step mother.

"From then on my father was the only person I considered to be my friend because Victoria convinced all the members of the royal court and anyone else she and my father knew that I was a terrible child and needed some 'straightening out.' She was a terrible person. She even banished the native Talking Animals of Narnia. Anyway, the years went by and about two years ago I met Juliana. She was the Princess of Archland and is still the most wonderful, smart, beautiful woman I have ever met to this day. We became really close, blah, blah, blah, and eventually we fell deeply in love. Marriage had been mentioned several times, but that would be a few years down the road. Then 8 months ago, my father and Victoria were invited to go to the castle in Archland to help prepare for the annual royal ball. I begged to go, too, for I wanted to see Juliana. But, my father would see nothing of that; I had to stay at Cair Paravel and 'watch over the place.' Victoria was ecstatic that I wasn't going along because then she's have my father all to herself. That little witch…" Matt commented under his breath. He stopped talking for a few seconds. After he sniffed his nose and took a deep breath he continued. Wade noticed that when Matt began talking this time, he continued with a more solemn voice than he had before; almost making him sound as if he would cry.

"So, I stayed at the castle and they went to Archland. Three days went by with no word from them. Then I got news that Archland's castle was ambushed by a group of rebel giants." Matt chocked out his next words with great difficulty. "There were no survivors."

Wade's breath was momentarily caught in his throat. So, Matt's parent's and Juliana died. That's got to really suck… He now knew the summary of Matt's life and how much hell he'd went through. He was the King because his father and his first wife and second wife both died. Narnia needed a ruler, and Matt was the first heir to the thrown. What a terrible way to become king! The American thought.

"That's… that's gotta be really tough. I guess I don't know what else really to say. I mean no one that close to me has died. But, I know Mallory--"

"Look, Wade, we've got to get moving. We've already spent more time here than I intended to. Come on." Matt slowly stood up, rubbed his eyes with his hands and quickly ran his fingers through his hair, trying to shake off those memories. Wade just stayed where he was, still thinking through what Matt had told him.

"You coming?"

"Uh, yeah," Wade stood up. He would just have to not make a big deal about Matt's past because, to Wade, that seemed to be the way the King wanted it to be.

After leaving the clearing they made good time. Along the way Wade still felt uneasy. Partially because of what Matt told him. But mostly what was eating at him was still the feeling that they were being watched or followed. Only an hour later they reached Glasswater. With the moonlight they were able to pinpoint a large, mysterious silhouette of a ship, lazily floating out in the peaceful waters. Now, all they had to do was wait for morning to see what they were up against.

A/N: Well? How was that? Review please! Hmm, now some stuff to think about until next time: Is something following Wade and Matt or is Wade just paranoid? What is awaiting them on the ship floating out in the water? Why did Wade mention Mallory when he was talking about how he didn't know what it was like to loose someone close to them? You'll just have to wait and see!