Note: The characters of the Princess Diaries, or the Princess Diaries itself, do not belong to me- they belong to Meg Cabot and Disney.

Author's note: Hi! I'm still working on chapter 3 of 'The Dating Game' but I just thought of this one and had to put this chapter up first!

MIA

For a moment, as she smelt coffee and heard her curtains being drawn open, Mia Thermopolis didn't want to wake up. She was so comfortable in bed, and in the middle of a good dream, so why on earth were her ladies maids waking her up so early? Then…she realised, and sat upright in bed, hair over her face. Today her grandmother was stepping down from the throne, and she, Mia, was going to be crowned Queen of Genovia.

"Good morning Your Highness," came from the foot of the bed, and Mia brushed her hair aside to see her two girls standing there. "You wanted us to wake you up early this morning," Brigit reminded her as Mia tried to gather her wits about her.

"Thank you, ladies….What time is it by the way?"

"Just after seven," Brigitta piped up eagerly. "Paolo will be here about nine…"

"Yes, thank you." Mia dismissed them with a smile- she had already been through the schedule twice a day, for the past week- once with Charlotte, and the other with Clarisse, her mother and Lily.

"You are going to be on a strict schedule on the day, Mia, and you cannot afford to be late," Clarisse reiterated on more than one occasion, and Mia made a face.

"I thought you said a Queen was never late, but everyone else was simply early," Mia retorted cheekily, and Clarisse could only laugh in reply.

Mia smiled at the memory as she sat back on her pillows- even now, the morning of the coronation, it was still hard to believe that she would be Queen of Genovia by this evening. It seemed unbelievable, particularly after the hurdles she had overcome in the past few years-especially, six years ago, when her grandmother had broken the news to her that she was a princess, and would eventually be ruler of Genovia. Mia chuckled, remembering the way Clarisse had choked on her tea when she had come out with "Shut up!" Over the years, however, she had grown used to Mia's lingo, and was now unflappable about what Mia came out with.

"Just as long as you don't do it in parliament," was all she said, and Mia had laughed, remembering the day when it had happened to Clarisse.

Mia looked pensively out the window, thinking about her grandmother- would it be awfully hard for her to relinquish the throne, after so many years? She had been Queen for a very long time- first as Rupert's consort, then Queen in her own right. She had dreamed of the day her son Phillipe, Mia's father, would be King before tragedy struck, and then Mia had suddenly been thrust into being first in line. But, as Clarisse had said the evening before, it was time for a new ruler, and new changes.

"Although I shudder at what things you are going to try and introduce," Clarisse joked to her, but smiling fondly.

That was the one thing Mia never doubted- that her grandmother would always believe in her, not matter what she did. As did Joseph, Clarisse's loyal bodyguard for many years, and brand new husband of a week! Watching them together, after the wedding, Mia wondered how they had managed to stay apart for so many years, particularly given the love they shared, and the looks they had exchanged when they thought no one was looking.

Happily, that had changed the week before, when they exchanged vows on the day when Mia had been meant to marry Andrew Jacoby, and secure her throne. Despite the fact that Andrew was a very intelligent and kind man, and would be supportive of her life, she had been uneasy about the wedding , particularly when Nicholas and his uncle had been trying to wrest the throne away, and she had then discovered what Nicholas was really like, and as she walked up the aisle, she had had a moment of blind panic, before running out of the church.

Hot on her heels, however, was Clarisse and Mia soon realised that they were more alike than she had ever realised.

"Darling, listen to me. I made my choice long ago. Duty to my country, over love. It's what I've always done, it seems. It's been drummed into me my entire life. Now, I've lost the only man I ever really loved."

They both turned to see Joseph standing a discreet distance away and Mia realised that Clarisse had suffered her own personal heartbreak, and she had failed to notice anything different in her demeanour, which made Mia feel guilty. It was that that propelled her into not only not marrying Andrew, but giving Clarisse her blessing.

"Grandma? Just because I didn't get my fairytale ending doesn't mean you shouldn't"

She was glad that she had, as they were clearly very much in love, and happier than ever.

But now it was Mia's turn in the spotlight, although she wondered where Nicholas was- the maids had told her that he had 'finished' with his uncle, but Mia hadn't seen any sign of him since, and it made her a little sad. Romance was more on her mind than ever, particularly after Clarisse and Joe's wedding….but she couldn't afford to think about it today…..her day of days…..

"Your breakfast is ready, Your Highness," Brigitta stood in the doorway of her bedroom, and Mia looked up, jolted from her train of thought. She glanced over at her bedside cabinet clock- it was nearly half past seven! She had been daydreaming for nearly half an hour- 'that has got to stop,' she said to herself as she climbed out of bed, and put on her silk dressing gown.

"Is there anything else you need, Your Highness?" the two girls hovered near the doorway as Mia poured herself a cup of coffee, and reached for Fat Louie- she needed a hug.

"No, thank you. You can go and have breakfast. I'll need you back here at ten, though."

The two girls gave their usual greeting, and disappeared, leaving Mia to her thoughts. She wondered where Lily or her mother were- they were usually in here before she was out of bed, trying to get her up, and now she was up before them!

It didn't occur to her that they were giving her space and time to reflect- as Helen said to Clarisse the night before as they went to their suites.

"She's not going to be my little girl after tomorrow," she said a little wistfully, and Clarisse patted her arm sympathetically.

"She will always be your little girl."

Mia was too nervous to eat much, although she had two pieces of toast and two cups of coffee- the rehearsal the day before had gone well, but she didn't want to begin her reign on a clumsy note.

"Courage isn't the absence of fear- rather the judgement that something else is more important," she murmured softly to herself, glancing over at the framed picture of her father on her dresser. "I wish you were here, Dad."

Suddenly, she had the urge to see his portrait in the throne room- just a few moments with her father, the man she had barely known, but had made such an indelible imprint on her life. Although she had never known him, she would never forget him. She scribbled a note, just in case her mother or Lily happened to drop in, and dashed out the door, Fat Louie hot on her heels.

The throne room was dark and quiet when she entered, apart from the small ray of sunlight coming through the window just above the throne. Thankfully no one would find her here- they were setting up for the coronation in the ball room, and no one usually entered here unless the Queen was greeting the people. She would be doing that soon, she realised sharply as she wandered past all the portraits on the walls. There were 300 years worth of Renaldi's on the walls, and she wondered how they had felt when they had been crowned- scared? Apprehensive? Proud? Almost all of them were men, except for one closer to the throne- a picture of a young blonde woman, barely older than Mia herself was now. There was another portrait with her husband, the next one over, but this was the only woman in the room- Clarisse Renaldi, her grandmother. Now, Mia would join her up on the walls, next to her father and uncle…..they both looked so youthful and happy, she thought to herself as she stood there for a few moments, looking at them. What would have happened if her Uncle Pierre had decided to become King? Would her father have had a much happier life- would he still be married to her mother? Would Clarisse have married Joe a lot sooner? There were so many unanswered questions, but Mia didn't want to think about them- this was the way it had happened and it was her throne now.

She glanced over at the throne- Fat Louie, already knowing his position in the royal court, was sitting on his cushion looking at her regally with his bright green eyes.

"I guess we already know who's second in line?" she joked aloud, sitting down on the throne, and looking down at him. She glanced around the room- in her mind's eye, she could see the queue of people waiting to greet her, and give her something for her table. It was still unbelievable that this was going to happen- and she gave a nervous giggle.

"So what do you say, Fat Louie? Think I'll make a good Queen?" she looked down at the cat again, and was startled when she heard someone from behind her.

"Indeed you will." She looked up, and her heart started racing when she saw that it was Nicholas, looking serious and handsome in a navy suit.

"If I may be so bold, I would like an audience with Your Highness." She waved her hand in front of her, and he stepped to there, looking at her.

"What is your dilemma, young man?" she put on her regal voice, imitating her grandmother.

"You are, in fact," and Mia was surprised, but pleased- even more so when he knelt on one knee in front of her.

"I'm in love with the queen-to-be. And I'm inquiring if she loves me too."

"Do you have a chicken for my table?" Mia joked quietly, inwardly rejoicing at his news.

"No. No, my kitchen is out of chickens," he replied in the same joking manner, still watching her face. For a moment, Mia pretended to be disappointed at the news, and leant back in her chair, before leaping out of her chair and into his arms- this, this was where she belonged! After a hug, Nicholas pulled away and looked into her eyes.

"Mia," he breathed before she took the hint and kissed him. As the kiss got deeper, she was surprised to feel her left leg pop up, as it did when she kissed Michael in the consulate garden. So this was what it felt like- she had almost forgotten! In her excitement, she kicked her shoes off as Nicholas swept her off her feet.

"I was so afraid…."Mia began hesitantly when she was back on the ground, although with Nicholas's revelation and the coronation, she was afraid that she was very much on cloud nine.

"Afraid of what?" Nicholas said gently, brushing her hair off her face.

"That you wouldn't come back, at all. After the wedding, I wanted to see you but you had gone….."
"Yes, I thought it was best that I moved out of my uncle's place and gave you time to prepare for your coronation."
"But where did you go?"
"I went into the country for a couple of days, to think. But I realised there was one thing I couldn't forget, as much as I tried…"

He looked at her intensely, and she blushed, before he pulled her in for another kiss. "I needed to know whether you felt the same way."
"And now you know," Mia said matter of factly, sitting back down on the throne, Nicholas sitting on the steps and looking up at her.

"By the way, how did your archery and the flaming arrow go?"
"Perfectly, like a dream. I really wished you had been there then too," Mia said wistfully, and he took her hand in his.

"I'm here now though." They looked at each other for a moment, before the doors opened and in came Lily.

"There you are! We went to your suite to wake you up, and your maids said you'd already been up- and then we read your note…..Oh," she stopped short when she saw Nicholas sitting there. "Am I interrupting something?"
"No, Lily. I'm just greeting my first guest for today," Mia said calmly, standing up while still holding Nicholas's hand and valiantly ignoring the butterflies in her stomach. "You remember Lord Devereaux, don't you?" she added impishly, knowing that Lily's intense dislike for him had evaporated when he had declined the throne.

"Yes, hi Lord Devereaux," Lily said easily, looking from one to the other and deducing the secret.

"Please, it's Nicholas," he waved away the formalities.

"Just Nicholas?" Mia teased, and they both remembered the night they had met, before Lily broke up the moment.

"I'm sorry but Mia…you're needed in your suite- Paolo's here and he's starting to get hysterical……"
"Oh! Oh, okay," Mia said, a little flustered, and then she turned to Nicholas.

"You are staying for today, aren't you?"
"Of course."
"Well, I'm going to get Charlotte to arrange a special place for you. You aren't going to hide away in the crowd this time! Yes, I'm coming Lily," she shot to Lily, who was making impatient noises from the doorway. "I'll organise it, and see you later."

He wanted to kiss her again, but didn't feel that it was the right time, particularly with Lily tapping her foot loudly on the floor. She gave him one last smile, and then disappeared out the door.

"I'll tell you about it later," was all she said to Lily as they hurried back to her suite. "I didn't realise how late it was- where's Mom?"
"Waiting in the suite for you- and your grandmother told me to tell you she was going to drop in later after everything was finished."
"Great." Mia really wanted to see her grandmother again, one more time, before their roles were reversed and she was no longer Queen. She stood outside her door for a moment, took a deep breath and then stepped in, Lily close behind.

"Paolo! How wonderful to see you again so soon!"