A/N: This is my first Princess Diaries fanfic, so I apologize in advance for any OOC between Clarisse and Joseph. I found them both extremely difficult to write for! Especially Clarisse. She's so proper, so putting her out of her element is hard.

And There was Love

Chapter 1

kateandharvey

The insistent ringing of the phone in her suite was enough to irritate the queen. She was a hard sleeper, and well into her sleep when the bedside phone seemed to scream her name in repetitive, shrill noises. Groggily, she reached over and held the phone up to her ear. "Hello?" She answered, wondering just what could be so important at three o'clock in the morning.

She heard gasping on the other end. "C-C-Clarisse."

"Joseph?" She breathed, sitting up in her bed. "What is it, what's the matter?"

"I-I..." She heard him panting as he tried to continue. "Heart attack." Is what she heard crystal clear through the receiver. Throwing the sheets off of her body, she ran towards his room.

"I'm coming, Joseph. Just stay calm. Okay?" The silence on the other end was enough for the lump forming in her throat to become thicker. Daniel, the security man currently placed outside of her bedroom door stared at her as she swung the door open. "Joseph's having a heart attack, call an ambulance." She told him, and she ran down the hall, her bare feet slapping against the cold tile. She easily ripped open his door and found him on the ground next to his bed, the phone next to him, having fallen from his hand. The site before her made her what to curl up into a corner and cry her eyes out, but instead she ran to him.

"Joseph." She breathed, falling to her knees at his head, pulling it into her lap and cradling it, running her hands lazily through his hair. "Joseph, can you hear me?" A faint nod of his head was her response before the paramedics burst through the door, loading him onto a stretcher and away. Just before they carried him from the room, she stood at his side and promised him, "I'll come to the hospital right away, alright?" The paramedics all exchanged looks at the queen and her head of security. Silently, they carried him from the room.

"Grandma?" Mia entered the room, her face showing nothing but worry. "What's going on?"

"Joseph had a heart attack." Clarisse held back the pricking of her tears in her eyes. "I have to go to the hospital."

"I'll come with you." Mia nodded, "But... Don't you think you should change first?"

She glanced down at her short green nightgown and blushed. She'd forgotten what she was wearing when she'd rushed from the room. "Yes, I'll go change, but I think you should just go back to bed." As her granddaughter tried to protest, Clarisse held up her hand to stop her. "You have a busy day tomorrow, and need your rest. I will go, and update you tomorrow morning. Alright?"

Mia nodded, "Okay." As she went to exit the room, she turned back to her grandma. "Grandma?"

"Yes?"

"I really hope he'll be alright."

The queen nodded her head, "He will, Mia. He'll pull through." She smiled sadly as Mia exited the room, and headed to her suite to change.

~C&J~C&J~C&J~C&J~C&J~C&J~C&J~

All of the people in the emergency room stared at her as she entered the hospital, and marched straight to the front desk. The woman, currently reading over a file, chewed her gum loudly and spoke without looking up. "If you've got a cut, papers are on the left. If you've got another injury, papers are on the right..." Smack, smack, smack of the gum. "If you're here to see someone, I'll be with ya in just a second."

Clarisse just nodded, and waited patiently. "Alright."

The receptionist's head whipped up quickly. "Oh! Your-Your Majesty... I'm terribly sorry, what can I do for you?"

Clarisse smiled, "That's quite alright, I'm here to see my friend he was just brought in with a heart attack?"

The woman nodded, "Ah. Yes, he's being checked into a room as we speak. Our waiting room for family members is to the right. Go ahead and take a seat, and I'll call the doctor to come and update you on his condition."

It wasn't long before the doctor came out and walked over to her. "Hello, Your Majesty, I'm Dr. Carl Wilson." He smiled and shook her hand.

"Hello." She greeted, "How is Joseph."

Dr. Wilson looked quickly at the chart he was holding. "He's doing alright... He will make a full recovery." She sighed with relief at this, "But I will need to keep him over night. He's had a mild heart attack, just a little scare. He'll need to start exercising, and eating healthier foods after a week in bed." Clarisse nodded, "Will you or someone else be able to take care of him? Mostly just keeping him in bed?"

She smiled, "I can do that. When can I see him?"

Dr. Wilson smiled, "Right now, he's awake, and has been asking for you."

A/N: Oh, I know, what a crappy cut off spot! But I'm really excited about this story, and as it's my first PD story, I'd appreciate it if you'd review and let me know your opinion.