Disclaimer: It's been ten chapters. I don't own the Princess Diaries.
Author's Note: Oh my gosh! I think this is one of my longest stories. I really enjoy writing this more than anything I've written before. I love all of you. Thank you so much for reading and/or reviewing. I read every single review and take everything into consideration. Thank you so much. Xx
"Cause it makes me that much stronger.
Makes me work a little bit harder.
It makes me that much wiser.
So thanks for making me a fighter"
~ Stronger – Christina Aguilera ~
It's done. Mia's project is done. It only needs a couple more hours of work, but it's done. A couple touch-ups, and it will be completely ready for show. It's December 18th, the day before the Winter Carnival. I can't believe it's taken me nearly two weeks of straight, constant work.
I was watching it through once more until Lilly ran in.
"You have to come downstairs and see this," she demanded urgently.
"Lilly," I sighed impatiently. "The Winter Carnival is tomorrow. I'm busy."
Of course, being Lilly, she grabbed my arm aggressively and dragged me off my chair. She's stronger than she looks, you know.
"Fine, I'm coming," I said reluctantly.
Lilly led me to the living room couch and turned the plasma TV onto the Fox News Channel. Reporter Megyn Kelly appeared on the screen.
"And once again, we'll show a clip of the interview I held with Manhattan's Princess Mia Thermopolis last night," she said before Mia appeared on screen.
"As people may know, a photo spread was released in the Sunday Times on, um, Sunday," Mia smiled. I remembered the days when she would throw up when faced with public speaking. Now, she was appearing on national television. It's a wonder how people change. "A lot of people may see that I appear as a… sell-out. I want people to see that I'm not like a typical fashion obsessed teenager. If you would ask my friends, they'd tell you that, um, I'm really into environment issues, feminism, and animal rights. Therefore, I've decided that all the proceeds from the sales of these dresses will go straight to Greenpeace. Hopefully, the dresses will fly off the racks to girls like me who care just as much as I do about the environment."
"Thank you, Princess!" signed Megyn cheerfully
"It's no problem," Mia blushed.
Lilly shut off the television. "Isn't that weird? Ever since Mia became a princess, she's standing up a lot more for herself."
"I think it's…" I couldn't think of the word. "admirable."
I couldn't look up to Mia more. She faced her fears and stood up for something she believed in. I wanted to kiss her and keep her in my arms until the night faded into morning.
Author's Note: Just a little something on the side: if you don't understand why I chose the song, think about how Mia's feeling about what Sebastiano did by putting her photos in the Times.