A/N: Thanks for all the reviews!! I've been trying to watch the whole question/statement problem and for some reason I have no clue why I keep doing it... but thanks for pointing it out!! Here's the next chapter, which is mostly a filler, and I should be getting more up soon. I'm debating starting more stories but I'm not sure if I want to worry about getting more than one updated.. you know what I mean?? So, I'm still debating this but I'll probably start some more stories.

And just for the record, last night I couldn't sleep and ideas started coming into my head so I started to write them down and I ended up getting all these ideas and I have officially written the end to this and the epilogue, so there's no changing my mind on how it ends, lol. I also wrote a few bit and pieces between now and the end so chapters shouldn't take to long to get out. Now I'm going to shut up and let you read...

The Prince You Charmed

Chapter 4: The Throne

The next day Lizzie McGuire woke up feeling a sense of dread. She had stayed up most of the night replaying what Miranda had said over and over in her head.

You really are just like Kate.

Lizzie frowned. This wasn't what she wanted. Not at all. Fresh tears began in Lizzie's eyes for the numerous time in the last few days. But she reassured herself by telling herself that Ryan would be there to make it all okay. He told her he'd "introduce" her to Kate and her posse. Lizzie rolled her eyes, she didn't need to be introduced to them. She already knew them better than she wanted to.

But if it's what Ryan thought. . .

Miranda sat straight up in her bed, wiping her eyes. Suddenly the day before entered her mind and she sighed with sadness. She had gone to bed the night before hoping that she'd wake up and discover it was all a dream. At the same time, she knew that it wouldn't be all a dream and that it was really happening.

She was losing one of her best friends to the popular, again. And the worst part was that she knew there was nothing she could do about it. She couldn't convince Lizzie to break up with Ryan without a good reason, a reason that Lizzie would understand. Lizzie would just get mad at her and then things would be ten times worse.

Miranda climbed out of her bed and groaned. She pulled herself into the bathroom and lazily shut the door behind her, locking it. She stepped into the nice hot shower hoping it would help sort out her thoughts.

Gordo was lying down in his bed, for the moment he was refusing to lift himself out of the bed for the rest of his life. He pulled the pillow out from under his head and replaced it on top of his face. He stayed in that position for a few minutes before rolling over and laying on his stomach for awhile. Gordo couldn't get comfortable again and he knew that he had to pull himself out of the bed. He rolled over again and promptly rolled right off the bed. That always had been the easiest way to get out of the bed. Now the problem was getting himself off of the floor.

He sighed again and sat up. All he could think about was Lizzie. He wanted nothing more then to call her and beg her to break up with Ryan and become his Lizzie again. But she wouldn't listen, would she?

Lizzie hummed softly and tried to think of a plan to get to school. She didn't want to take the bus and she knew that if she asked her mom a second day in a row, she'd get even more suspicious than she already was. She could walk, but it was a long one and she would have had to left five minutes ago to get there on time and she wasn't even ready yet.

She bit her bottom lip, wishing she could drive herself to school. A soft knock on her door was heard.

"Come in," she answered the knock. She smiled when her mom stuck her head in the door.

"Honey, do you need a ride to school again?"

Lizzie looked up shocked, it was like parents really could read minds. She nodded slowly, "Sure Mom, that'd be great."

"Alright, let me know when you're ready."

"Okay Mom, thanks."

She nodded, "You bet," Jo closed the door behind her. She really hoped that Lizzie could work out whatever problem she was having with Miranda and Gordo.

Ryan met up with Lizzie as soon as she entered the building and slung his arm around her shoulder.

"Hey, how's it going?"

"Um, pretty good. But I was thinking, maybe I could eat lunch with Miranda and Gordo today?"

"Mmm, I don't think that's a good idea Lizzie."

Lizzie nodded, "Okay."

"Come on, lets go talk to Kate and them."

"Okay," Lizzie responded again.

"Hey," Ryan said to Kate, and then he glanced over to Claire, "you guys know Lizzie, right?"

"Of course we do, we hang out all the time," Claire lied. Lizzie rolled her eyes and shot Claire a nasty look.

"Yeah all the time," she agreed, reluctantly.

"Really, that's great. She can eat lunch with you today then, right?"

"Of course," Claire nodded, enthusiastically.

"Look at her Gordo, now she's associating with Kate too. We've completely lost her."

Gordo shot a glare at Miranda. "Yeah, thanks, but I've noticed all by myself."

"Sorry, Gordo."

He sighed. "Don't worry about it."

Miranda watched as Lizzie glared at Kate. "It doesn't even look like she's having fun."

"Would you be having fun if you were talking to Kate and Claire."

Miranda shot him a disgusted look, "No way."

He chuckled slightly, "Exactly."

Lizzie smiled, eating lunch with Kate and her posse wasn't as bad as she thought it would be. They were actually nice, when they liked you and Lizzie felt at ease talking to them and even laughing.

Maybe she would survive without Miranda and Gordo. Problem was, she didn't want to survive without them. Claire glanced at Kate, "So Kate, how's it going with Ethan?"

Kate rolled her eyes. "You'd think he'd have a little more to him then good hair, but I guess not."

Lizzie giggled, along with the rest of the girls. "Seriously you guys, I think he's getting worse, it's like he's taking lessons from Tawney."

Lizzie spoke up, "You know, when I first met her I was totally freaked to learn that Ethan must have been the smart one in the family."

"I know! I thought the same this," expressed Kate. Lizzie smiled a genuine smile. Maybe everything really was better this way, just like Ryan had said. She glanced over to Miranda and Gordo who were sitting in their normal spots and felt pain shoot through her. She bit her lip and knew that she'd still rather be back with her best friends.

Miranda finished reading the newly assigned chapter from her English homework at lunch. For some reason, without Lizzie there really wasn't much to talk about. She sighed and closed the book after debating for a few minutes whether or not to start the next chapter. "I'm bored, Gordo," she told him.

"Not much I can do about it."

She rolled her eyes and huffed. "Thanks for the help," she took the time to glance over to Lizzie and noticed that she was laughing, willingly. Gordo noticed her wandering eyes and looked up at her.

"I know, it's freaky isn't it? Kate and Lizzie getting along?"

"Totally freaky," Miranda agreed, nodding. "But you know, they used to be like sisters so that's not as surprising as Claire and Lizzie getting along."

"True. Very true."

"So what do we do?" Miranda questions.

"What do you mean 'what do we do'?"

Miranda nodded her head towards Lizzie. "How do we get her back?"

Gordo shook his head and a pained look covered his eyes. "We wait for her to make that decision."

Miranda scoffed. "No way, no way, I want my best friend back."

"Trust me, Miranda, no wants her back to normal more than me but if we go up to her telling her all this she's just going to get mad at us."

"I know, but then maybe--"

"No, maybe nothing. All we can do is wait and hope Lizzie will decided what's best for her and not let Ryan decide her life for her."

Miranda sighed and rested her chin on top of the table. "I guess you're right," she said, dejectedly.

Ryan grinned as he hung out with his friends, shooting glances towards Lizzie every once in awhile. She seemed to be getting along just fine and although he knew she missed her friends he was convinced that now she would be "normal" again. Sure, he knew what he was doing was wrong but he didn't care.

He wanted Lizzie to be perfect so that when he took her places everyone would think he had the perfect girlfriend. When he had first seen Lizzie, that's exactly what she had seemed like. She seemed like a happy, go lucky teenager and although she seemed a little up beat and energetic for him he assumed he could change her. But then she came with all these problems so he tried to completely transform her to be a calmer, tamer girl.

And she seemed to be doing just fine with all these changes. She still tried to find ways to see her "friends" but he told her no every single time and she listened. Just like he wanted. He had told her many times he just wanted what was best for her and although he wasn't sure if he believed what he was telling her, she sure did.

And that's all that mattered.

Gordo and Miranda were both increasingly happy to see Lizzie step onto the bus the next morning. They exchanged happy glances and thought that just maybe Lizzie had broken up with Ryan. Figuring that she realized how much of a jerk Ryan really had been, they both scooted over a little to make room for her on the seat.

However she walked past them. Miranda figured she just hadn't seen them so she called out to her. "Hey Lizzie," she began, "we're over here."

Lizzie glanced over her shoulder and shot them a thoroughly disgusted look. "Why do I care where you two losers are?"

They looked taken aback. "We thought you'd want to sit with us."

"Yeah right, why would I want to be seen with two losers?" she questioned as she turned and marched back beside Kate. She graciously accepted the seat next to her and sat down, smiling happily at Kate.

"She's like a--" Gordo started.

"Kate clone," Miranda finished for him.

Lizzie sat down beside Kate and smiled at her. She glanced back up at Gordo and Miranda and sighed.

'I'm so sorry you guys, I didn't mean it, I didn't.'Lizzie inwardly apologized for her words but at the same time knew it wasn't doing any good.

She was turning into Kate, and for some reason she felt like she'd never be able to stop it.