Author's note: I'm sorry this has taken so long to be posted, but I've been away. I'm also sorry if it seems like a very short chapter, with not much violence, but I didn't want to make it over dramatic. The next chapter may explain a few things…

The Princess Diaries belongs to Disney and Meg Cabot

It was calm and relatively quiet trip down to Viscount Mabrey's estate- Shades, Sebastian, Nicholas and Lily were in the first car, followed by Joe and Clarisse in the second, with three car loads of security men bringing up the rear. Joseph had at first planned on going with the others but, as Clarisse and Lily had both decided to come, he decided to drive himself and Clarisse down. He had half expected Clarisse to sit in the back, but she had insisted on sitting in the front passenger seat, beside him.

"The only time I've sat in the front seat of a car is when Mia took me to that carnival in San Francisco," Clarisse laughed as they followed Shade's car out the palace gates.

"And that was the time when I was mad at you for going out without letting me know where you were!" Joseph retorted with a smile, remembering the panic he had got in when he had discovered that the Queen was absent, and had no security with her, before…a police car had shown up and Clarisse had stepped out of the backseat, looking rather pleased with herself.

"Oh yes, I remember that! Your expression when we arrived…..!"

"But you could have…could have…."

"Could have what, Joseph?" she sounded amused. "I know, I could have been kidnapped myself, but I very much doubt that there would be any use of kidnapping the Queen of a small country!"

There was a brief pause, before she gently touched his hand on the steering wheel.

"But I did appreciate your concern for me."

There was a long silence as Clarisse looked out the window, and thought about Mia. The girl had already endured enough since she had found out she was a princess, and now to undergo a kidnapping….! Clarisse wished, deep down, that they had taken her rather than the beautiful young woman with the world at her feet.

"Stop that…" she heard from beside her, and she turned her face to see him looking at her out of the corner of his eye.

" I know what you were thinking, and you shouldn't think like that. We're going to find Mia….do you trust me?"

"Of course I do."

"Then trust me when I saw that we're going to find the Queen."

"Alright, I'll believe you," Clarisse said and gave him a smile.


Three hours later, they arrived at the gates of Viscount Mabrey's estate and, while most of the security cars drove past, waited for the gates to open. Clarisse looked out the window curiously as they drove through the narrow, tree surrounded driveway- she had only been here a few times in her life, as the Viscount had been a friend of Rupert's. They rolled to a stop at the edge of the pebbled driveway 10 minutes later, near to an elegant mansion, and Clarisse hated to admit it, but she was impressed.

"What a beautiful place," she murmured as Joseph opened her door, and she stepped out. Although she didn't like the Viscount, she did appreciate the extensive work that had been done in his garden- the lawns were well taken care of, despite the winter months, and there were several empty flower beds in view.

He obviously had a very diligent gardener, especially one that mowed lawns at Christmas! She shook her head after a moment- this was no time to daydream…Mia's life could be at stake.

"Right- the boys and I are going around the back, and you will have to distract them as we make our way into the house," Shades said quickly. "They don't know that we're here…" The security men were driving in the back way, and Shades was meeting them around the back.

"Good luck!" he said before he dashed off around the side of the house, obviously unseen. Clarisse watched his disappearing figure, before Joseph put a hand on her shoulder.

"I think you and Lily should wait out here in the car," he said softly, as she looked at him with determined blue eyes.

"No- I've come this far, and I'm not going to hide out here!"

Joseph groaned inwardly- his wife could be very stubborn at times! But, he thought ruefully, it was one of things he loved about her. Besides, he couldn't imagine her waiting in the wings if something was going on inside.

"Fine, you both can come too- but I would like you to stay in the sidelines, unless necessary."

"That's fine with me!" Clarisse said cheerfully- Lily was somehow a little less sure.

"Nicholas, you go first and then explain that Sebastian and I accompanied you," Joseph turned to the young man, who nodded and then walked briskly towards the house.

"No one out here to meet him…very odd," Joseph said under his breath before he led the others towards the main door. Nicholas had obviously met his uncle in the front foyer, as he could hear people talking, before Viscount Mabrey exclaimed:

"Nicholas! Aren't you going to invite your guests in?"

Slowly, Sebastian and Joseph made their way to either side of Nicholas- Clarisse and Lily were still peering behind the door.

"Prime Minister, Joseph- good to see you," there was a note of false sincerity in his voice.

"But I don't think that's all of you- I believe Her Majesty Senior and a certain feisty best friend is hiding in the doorway!"

Joseph turned, inwardly groaning at the man's cheek, and signalled to the two women to join them. Lily stood next to Sebastian, while Clarisse stood beside Joseph, and he took her hand in his.

"Good morning Your Majesty," Mabrey's eyes lingered on Clarisse a little longer than everyone else, and she almost visibly shuddered. He may have been a friend of Rupert's, many years ago, but that didn't stop him from eyeing the King's beautiful wife from time to time. She unconsciously moved closer to Joseph, and the Viscount's eyes almost burned a venomous hole in them.

"Oh, I must pass on my congratulations to the new happy couple!" Mabrey said falsely, sneering at Clarisse and Joe.

"How on earth did you manage to marry her, Bonnell? Surely there would have been someone more appropriate…."

"Uncle…" Nicholas stepped in quickly before Joseph could say a thing. "Where is she?"

"Where is who?"

"You know who I mean…you've got Mia!" Mabrey looked at his nephew intensely for a moment, and then laughed.

"You're a regular little detective, aren't you? You and Bonnell here could win a competition!"

After he stopped laughing, the nasty smile still on his face, Mabrey turned and nodded to someone unseen in the next room, who dragged in a gagged and bound Mia. She looked dirty, and her hair was unkempt, but they seemingly had taken care of her. Her tear stained eyes met everyone's for a moment, before she was thrown roughly in a chair. Another of Mabrey's henchmen appeared from the next room and pulled a gun out of his pocket, before placing it at Mia's temple.

Clarisse couldn't help but gasp- this was the way her nightmare had begun! She only hoped that that it wouldn't all come true.

"Surprise!" said someone loudly, and the Viscount smiled happily around at everyone, before his eyes stopped on Nicholas.

Clarisse glanced at him- he had gone white, but his jaw was taut, and she could literally feel the anger emanating from him as Sebastian Motez held his other arm.

"Why? Why her?"

"Why? It was because of her, and those two over there," he shot a contemptuous look at Clarisse and Joseph. "That she became Queen of Genovia, and is ruling instead of you! You, a true born and bred Genovian, passed over for a half Genovian girl who didn't know she was a Princess till six years ago!"

He literally spat the last few words, and left no doubt in anyone's mind that he hated her for that. "You could have been King!"

"And what would have been in it for you, Uncle? The Prime Minister's position, maybe? But I think you just wanted the power to show off to everyone else!" Nicholas returned quickly, and the smile disappeared off Viscount Mabrey's face.

"Now listen, my boy," he began in a conciliatory tone. "Don't you ever wish that you hadn't turned the throne down? Surely, you are wondering what could have happened!"

"Uncle, you know that she is the best ruler for Genovia- I have seen her in action, and she is doing a far better job that I would have!"

"She's bewitched you," Mabrey sniffed.

"What are you going to do now, Mabrey?" Joseph spoke up softly, stepping up to stand next to Nicholas, quickly followed by Sebastian. "Nicholas obviously doesn't want the throne, and you have no legal heirs to the throne anymore…."

"Who is the next in line?" Clarisse asked, stepping up next to Joseph. "I obviously don't qualify anymore, not being a royal by blood, but I don't know who's next."

"The Von Trokans," Sebastian said from Nicholas's other side. "But they won't agree to this, no way."

"Oh, I don't know…" Mabrey began thoughtfully, circling the calm but clearly frightened Queen, as a gush of pride surged through Clarisse at how she was acting.

"I think, given the right persuasion, they would give their claim to someone else…."

He nodded again to his henchmen, who disappeared for a moment, and then came back with a partner, both of whom were dragging a person….the Baron and Baroness Von Trokan, both of whom were tied up and gagged.

Clarisse gasped, and then looked over at Sebastian.

"Why didn't you say anything about them being missing?"

"I didn't know myself till this morning."

"And, after a little time, they are willing to give up the claim for me…" Mabrey continued as he smiled spitefully at the two cowering people.

"But, you would need someone to be on the throne…" Joseph said thoughtfully.

"Yes…and I have the perfect man in mind….my son, Ronald…" and, from the next room, came a tall, dark haired young man who looked exactly like his father. Nicholas almost lashed out, but both Joseph and Sebastian were keeping a firm hold on him.

"How dare you!" Nicholas shouted, as Ronald smiled coolly around the room, and then stood next to his father.

"But we have, Nicky old boy, and the plan has worked perfectly…."

"What do you mean perfectly…what's going to happen to Mia?"

"We'll kill her," Ronald said casually, wandering over to Mia, and smiling maliciously at her.

"Not while I've got breath in my body!" Clarisse stepped away from Joseph, and glared at them.

"Besides, why….."She trailed off when she realised that she had been meant to come today…it had been a trap.

"You won't be killed of course, Your Majesty, but I thought that you deserved a little time to say goodbye to your last living relative," Ronald smiled coolly at her, and Clarisse almost thought that she would faint. They were going to kill her- and they wanted her grandmother to watch?

Just then, there was a small noise from one of the rooms, and Clarisse could feel Joseph's arm guide her back towards him.

"So, any last words to Her Royal Highness?" Mabrey said sarcastically before Shades and his men raced in through every entry and grabbed a man, followed quickly by the police.

Shades wrestled the gun away from the masked henchmen, before several police men wrestled them to the ground.

"NO! NO!" Viscount Mabrey shouted in rage, before two policemen pinned him against the wall, followed closely by his son. Nicholas, meanwhile, had raced over to untie and ungag Mia, as she smiled at him and then hugged him. Sebastian was untying the Von Trokans who, as soon as they were free, both hugged him.

"Are you alright?" Joseph whispered in Clarisse's ear, over all the noise and excitement, and she turned to him with tears in her eyes.

"She's safe, Joseph!"

She was going to say more, but then Mia was at her side, and literally threw herself into her arms as Clarisse openly cried.

"I thought Queens were never supposed to cry," Mia teased when they broke apart, and she saw her tear stained face.

"They are when their only grandchild is found!" Clarisse cried, before pulling her in for another hug.

"I love you Grandma," she heard the girl whisper into her ear.

"I love you too," she replied emotionally, before Mia gave Joe a quick hug and then moved onto Lily, who was sobbing almost as hard as Clarisse.

"Feel better?" Joseph pulled her closer, and she snuggled in to his arms.

"Much better," she said as they watched Viscount Mabrey, his son, and his 7 henchmen handcuffed and walked out the door. Viscount Mabrey managed to look back once, but all he saw were Joe and Clarisse smiling happily at each other.