A/N: Of course, non of the characters belongs to me. I just borrowed them and played a little with them. ;-) You'll notice that I've made referrences to some Julie Andrews movies - 3 of them actually. Okay,two are already mentioned in the fic but I'm curious who'll find out about the third one.

Now have fun. And don't forget to review. ;-)

It was the beginning of February, and it was cold. That was all Clarisse knew right now. How she had ever ended up being here in Germany with bodyguard and her granddaughter – the soon to be queen of Genovia – eluded her completely. But nonetheless she was more than willing to enjoy her stay here.

Mia had said that this little trip to Germany would be good to test her diplomatic skills as she would meet the President of the German Parliament. And she had convinced her grandmother that they could as well extend their stay here and enjoy the carnival celebrations in Cologne.

Clarisse had never been one for these festivities. Though Rupert and the boys had enjoyed immensely dressing up and giving costume parties at the palace she could never really warm up with the idea. And now Mia had practically forced her into wearing one of those ridiculous costumes. She looked like an English nanny from 1910 with a dress in that style and a hat with flowers on top. To complete the outfit there was an umbrella with a parrot head for a handle. And Joseph… Mia had made him a chimney sweep, emphasizing that their costumes were based on a very popular movie called Mary Poppins.

Clarisse just hoped that nobody would recognize her in that ridiculous outfit. It wouldn't be too good for the Genovian reputation when the queen was seen enjoying herself at a carnival parade instead of taking care of her duties.

So all she could do was wait in her hotel suite for Mia and Joseph to pick her up. Soon enough there was a knock on the door, and Mia entered, followed by Joe who had a huge grin on his face. He was clearly enjoying himself.

"Your majesty, you look great." Gallantly he bowed and planted a kiss on the back of her hand. Mia giggled.

"Mia, what on earth are you wearing?" Clarisse looked at her granddaughter, raising an eyebrow.

"It's a costume from a movie called The Sound of Music. Surely you must have heard of that one?" Mia asked incredulously.

Clarisse just shook her head. As queen she didn't have much time to go to the movies. And usually she preferred to spend her rare spare time with a good book than in front of the television set.

Mia just rolled her eyes and took her grandmother by her arm. On her way out she handed her a pair of scissor.

"What are these for?" Clarisse asked before taking the scissors.

"Well, obviously today is a day called Weiberfastnacht. That means that today women assume control and cut the ties of men." Mia grinned. It was obvious she liked the thought of being allowed to cut the ties of strangers in the streets.

"But you don't expect me to…" Clarisse started but Mia interrupted her.

"Of course I do. And I'm sure you'll have fun. Just try to relax for once." Mia pulled her grandmother closer and kissed her quickly on the cheek. She knew Clarisse was hesitant to do anything out of line but she was also convinced that she needed to loosen up once in a while. Being queen made it quite difficult for her just to enjoy herself or behave in an inappropriate way. But today Mia wanted her just to be Clarisse.

So they made their way down to the street where the parade would be. On their way there Mia pointed out several women who cut the ties of some unlucky men to show her grandmother that it was really okay today. And though Clarisse didn't really like the idea of destroying something she seemed a lot less reluctant.

Two hours and some glasses of German beer later Clarisse had to admit that Mia's idea to extend their stay in Germany wasn't that bad. Actually she had rarely had more fun than right now. Joseph never walked away from her side, stepping in front of her whenever he felt that anyone came too close, and getting her drinks when he saw that she was thirsty. Clarisse had never imagined that she could have so much fun in the middle of a crowd of noisy people.

When they finally left the crowd the three of them were as tired as after a day full of work. Clarisse was clearly a little tipsy and Joseph had to lead her back to their hotel. Mia giggled at the sight of her usually so composed and ladylike grandmother but promised Joseph not to mention anything about that day to those left behind in Genovia. It would only embarrass Clarisse.

Some minutes later they entered the hotel, and after taking the lift to the fifth floor where their suites were situated Joseph brought Clarisse to a halt in front of her door. Mia had already left them, so it was only the two of them.

"Thanks Joseph. I've really had a great day." Clarisse managed to say though it had become quite difficult to speak clearly.

"You're welcome, your majesty. I've enjoyed myself too." Gently he brought her hand to his lips and kissed it. Clarisse giggled.

"Joe, I would like to kiss you goodnight." She blushed lightly but held his gaze. Joe merely raised an eyebrow but was too pleased to argue with her. So he pointed to a spot on his cheek.

"Plant it right here."

Bringing her hands up to his face Clarisse turned Joe's head and kissed him fully on the lips. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the feeling of his lips on hers, of having him so close. How she had longed to have him that close.

Joe froze when he felt Clarisse's lips touch his mouth but before she could even try to pull away he brought his arms up and pulled her into a lose embrace. He had always dreamed of kissing her like that, and though he had always thought that she just might like him too he had never even imagined that she could actually consider kissing him. Not just a peck on the cheek which had happened before but an actual kiss. Like this one.

Not wanting to push her too far he didn't deepen the kiss but let her set the pace. All too soon Clarisse pulled away, caressing his cheek lightly with the back of her hand and smiling at him.

"Good night, Joseph," she whispered before turning around and entering her suite, leaving him in the hallway with a lot to think about.