Thanks for all the great reviews! Y'all are way too nice, seriously!

This chapter's a little short, but that doesn't mean it's not good ;)

Here we go, chapter 23! :)

Chapter 23: Heart of the Queen

Charlene had barely taken her lips off of his when he woke up.

"Charlie?" His weak voice was so uncharacteristic of him, but Charlene couldn't help but smile.

"You're awake!" She helped him sit up before tackling him in a hug.

"Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?"

Charlene pulled out of the hug and slapped him across the face. "Don't you dare do that to me again! You scared me!"

"I'm sorry?" She took his confusion as a good sign and hugged him again. "I won't let it happen again…uh…what did I do again?"

She laughed. "It doesn't matter. Want to start sailing back home? I'd rather not stay here."

"You don't want to build a summer home here?" He joked as she helped him up. He walked up to the steering wheel and called out to the crew that they were leaving for Florida.

After seeing Charlene's kiss bring Terry out of unconsciousness, Willa stared down at Philby. Could it really be that simple?

She kissed him softly. Before getting back to her sitting position, she felt a hand on her arm. She turned to see Philby struggling to sit up, using her arm for balance.

"Why do you have dirt all over you?" He asked her with a concerned voice. She couldn't help but smile. He had just been unconscious for hours but that didn't matter to him. He was worried about her.

"I went into the cave to retrieve the journal. No big."

"So does that mean that Maleficent's…gone?"

"Finn stabbed her."

"Oh. I must have been out of it for a long time." He placed a hand on his forehead. "Wow my head hurts."

"Come on, let's get you below decks." She helped him up and wrapped an arm around his waist to keep him steady.

Willa walked into the cabin with a glass of water. She set the glass on the bedside table and sat down on the bed by his knees. Philby hadn't noticed this before, but she wasn't using her left hand at all. He watched her as she stared at it, trying to move it in different directions, wincing every time.

"Willa, you're hurt." Philby sat up and reached for her wrist but she moved her hand out of the way.

"It's nothing."

"No it's not." He grabbed her wrist and she immediately winced. He examined her hand and wrist before coming to a conclusion. "You sprained your wrist. What happened?"

"I…I was in the cave and it was dark and I tripped over a rock and landed on my wrist."

"I should get you some ice for that." He started to get up, but Willa pushed him back down onto the bed.

"No Philby. You need to rest. Let me get it."

She hurried out of the room and came back a few minutes later without any ice. She sat back down on the bed, this time a little bit closer to Philby.

"They didn't have any ice. I'll get something to wrap it up in the morning."

"Okay." Philby wasn't completely convinced, but he decided not to question her. They sat there in awkward silence for a few minutes before Willa got up to leave, saying goodnight.

"Willa, wait." She turned around to face him in the doorway. "Why don't you sleep in here tonight?"

He felt himself blushing while he waited for her response. Philby sat and watched as Willa closed the door, walked over to the other side of the bed and got underneath the covers. She moved close to him and placed her head on his chest. He wrapped an arm around her and kissed her on the top of her head.

"Night Philby."

"Goodnight sweetheart." He whispered to her before drifting to sleep.

Two Days Later

"Oh it feels so good to be home!" Charlene exclaimed as she twirled around in the grand hall of the castle. She turned to the first maid she saw and announced a grand ball tonight. After the maid scurried off to spread the news, Charlene led the rest of the group into the dining hall for a late breakfast.

After all seven had began to eat, Charlene broke the silence hanging over them.

"I asked a servant to go into town to get the nicest coffin he could find for Dillard. I presume you want to have the funeral back in California."

Finn nodded. "Thank you Charlene. It means a lot."

"It's the least I could do. Please let me know when the funeral is. I want to be there."

There was another few minutes of silence before Amanda suddenly dropped her fork and gripped the table. Finn snapped to attention and placed a hand on her lower back.

"Amanda? Are you okay?" Willa asked with a sincere concern in her voice.

"Yeah, I just…don't feel too good. That's all."

"Maybe you should rest some more." Jess suggested. "There's a bedroom near here, right Charlene?"

"Of course! You've been sick for some time now, maybe you've caught something. If you're still not feeling well Amanda, I can get a doctor to come check on you. "

"No!" Finn, Amanda and Jess all screamed in unison, surprising the rest of the group.

"What's going on?" Philby put down his silverware.

Finn glanced at Jess, hoping she would come up with something fast, but she was giving him the same look. Amanda finally let go of the table and sat up a little bit straighter.

"It's about time they find out." Amanda said quietly to Finn and Jess.

"Time we find out what?" The captain's frustrated voice was a little louder than it should have been.

"I'm…pregnant."

Charlene, Philby and the captain's eyes went wide. All three of them in shock. Willa, on the other hand, glanced from Amanda to Finn suspiciously.

After studying the couple for a few seconds, Willa broke the silence with a simple question. "Is it Finn's?"

Amanda nodded and Willa's face lit up.

"Finn! You're going to be a dad! That's the best news we've had in weeks!" She got up, came over to the other side of the table and gave both Finn and Amanda big hugs.

"You're not shocked or mad?" Finn asked his best friend. He was expecting her to slap him or something.

"No! Of course not!" She turned to Amanda. "How far along are you?"

"I'd say two weeks or so."

"Looks like we've got more to celebrate than defeating Maleficent!" Charlene added. "Congratulations you two." She gave Finn a warm smile. He made a mental note to thank her again for letting him out of their marriage alliance.

Terry felt like a whole different person entering the ballroom for the second time. The first time he had been miserable. He had fallen hard for the queen but he was also haunted by the memories of Jess.

This time he felt confident. He had been able to finally get closure with Jess. They had beaten Maleficent—well technically Finn had, but the captain wouldn't admit that out loud.

As he spun Charlene around on the dance floor, he couldn't help but admire how beautiful she looked. She was wearing a short-sleeved yellow dress that extended to the floor, her hair pulled back into a braid with her tiara to top it off.

The song changed and now a slower song was being played. Terry took the opportunity to pull her closer.

"So now that we've got Finn his throne back, what are you going to do?" She asked him, her eyes sparkling up at him.

"I thought about going back to being a pirate."

"That would only make sense." For a second there, she sounded disappointed.

"But I'm not so sure anymore."

She perked up. "So what are you going to do?"

"I might finally settle down. Find myself a nice girl. You know, boring stuff. I think I've had enough adventure for a while."

"You know, Florida looks beautiful this time of year."

"I hear their queen is the hottest girl all the kingdoms." He winked at her.

"I also hear she's fallen for someone."

"Oh really?" He asked sarcastically. "And who would the lucky guy be?"

"I hear she fell in love with a pirate." She winked at him.

"Oh, how scandalous!" She burst out into laughter. The captain couldn't help but pride himself on that. As long as he could make her laugh, he knew they would be the perfect couple.

She composed herself. "So why don't you stay here in Florida…you know…with me?"

"With you?" He pretended to consider the offer. He already knew his answer, but he was having a great time watching her reaction. "I guess I'll stay here."

Without warning, Charlene leaned up and kissed him.

"Well somebody's excited about me staying!" He joked when she ended the kiss.

"I've never been more excited." She smiled and he pulled her in for another kiss. He knew everybody in the ballroom was probably looking at them, but he didn't care. He had won the heart of the queen—and that's all that mattered.

Their kiss only lasted a few seconds before a giant blast was heard in the distance. Charlene and Terry shared a confused look. The musicians had stopped playing and everyone in the ballroom was staring at each other. The ambience of confusion only lasted for a few seconds before a giant cannonball burst through the tall windows and landed in the middle of the ballroom-only twenty feet from Charlene and Terry.

And that's when the ballroom became the first battleground of an all new war.

Just when you think they get a break...BOOM! A cannonball flies through the ballroom windows! Talk about plot twist!

Any ideas of who's firing at Queen Charlene's castle? I guess you'll have to find out next chapter! Or will you? Hmm...

Ha! Please review! I love reading them! I'll do my best to have the next chapter up soon! :)