A/N: Two chapters in a day! Wow! Thanks to all my readers and reviewers- you all rock!

The Princess Diaries don't belong to me

In years to come, Charlotte didn't know how she had managed to survive the ensuing summer months, let alone wonder how the future Queen, the present Queen and Joseph had managed to cope and deal with the many tiny hiccups that were thrown in their way during that time. Charlotte had hoped that, after the twenty first birthday ball, the Queen and the princess would be given the opportunity to really beginning to prepare the Princess for her ascension in December.

That was what a normal, sensible person would have done, she thought to herself (and Scott had said many times in retrospect) but, after all Scott said, they were dealing with parliament and men obsessed with power… most especially Viscount Mabrey.

She should have realised that he had something up his sleeve- he had seemed too relaxed at the birthday ball, too happy to be present and to assist with helping the Princess with her tiara, but she didn't… until she heard of his plan the following day, taking notes for the Queen in a session of parliament.

"An unmarried woman cannot be Queen…. luckily, there is another heir to the throne… who is ready to take his place as Genovia's rightful King..." he bowed slightly but his eyes remained on the horrified Queen who was standing up from her seat- and her reaction, while shocking some members of parliament, seemed entirely appropriate in this situation, to Charlotte.

"SHUT UP!"

Unfortunately, the shock wore off and the members of parliament were soon debating how soon the Princess would have to be married- but it had to be before she was to ascend the throne, they all agreed on that.

"30 days!" Lord Palimore's voice loudly decreed the set amount of time needed- just one month! Charlotte couldn't believe that, and she could see, from the expression on the Queen's face, she couldn't believe her…. and Charlotte didn't know what the Princess was going to say….

000

"How did she take it?" Scott asked Charlotte in a low voice much later in the day, once the Queen and the Princess had retired for the evening and Joseph was busy on a tour of the perimeter. The palace kitchens were empty, the staff having also retired for the evening, but there was always food and coffee available for the staff who were working later.

"Well, I wasn't actually there to see when Her Majesty informed her- they were in the throne room- but… I can imagine that she was shocked, stunned…"

"I would be… not only has she got to be Queen by the end of the year but she also has to be married… and an arranged marriage, no less!" He looked disgusted. "How did the Queen take the news?"

"Well… she didn't say much but…." Charlotte trailed off as she remembered after the parliament session…

The room emptied quickly, leaving only Her Majesty, Charlotte and the Prime Minister- of course, Viscount Mabrey couldn't help but throw one last smirk at the Queen on his departure- and there was a heavy silence for a moment before the Prime Minister spoke.

"Well… that was… unexpected."

"I wish I could say that it was… I suspected the Viscount would do something like that… not necessarily that law as such, but throw an impediment in the works…" Her Majesty sighed tiredly as she slowly stood up, looking older than her years for a moment. "I never thought I would see that law invoked… ever."

"I am sorry, Your Majesty… if there was anything I could do… but there was a majority rule…"

"I know, I know, I appreciate that…. Now, we're going to have to find some appropriate young men for Mia to vet… such is the age of a modern Genovian royal marriage," she sounded bitter for a moment. "Charlotte," she suddenly turned to Charlotte, who had been sitting on her other side. "Would you be able to gather a number of names together in the next few days? I'll speak to Joseph, he'll be able to help, in some way…" she trailed off before she stood up and made her way down from the booth, walking slowly down the empty room and out the door.

"How did Joe find out about it?"

"Prime Minister Motaz gave him a call… he wasn't here when Her Majesty came back but I made sure that Joseph called him back… and… well… I have never seen him that angry in a long, long time…."

"Yes, he was almost too angry to speak when he came into the study… but I assume that the Queen calmed him down, or he comforted her…."

"I wonder how that happened?" a grin suddenly burst onto his face and even Charlotte couldn't help but smile at his words.

"I wouldn't know," she said simply and they grinned at each other for a moment before the smile disappeared from his face as quickly as it had appeared.

"So… you and Joseph have to compile a list of appropriate candidates for the Queen and Mia to vet?"

"Yes, we have to have it done by Thursday… but, hopefully by then, there should be something else to look forward to…."

"Like what?"

"You're going to have to wait and see," she smiled mysteriously at him.

00000

The arrival of the Princess's best friend, Lily, on the Thursday, was one of the bright moments of the week (although the Princess's pleasure when she finally moved to her own suite, down the hall from the Queen's, was another bright moment) and the Princess's excitement and pleasure to see her delighted Charlotte, her grandmother and Joseph, although the excitement dimmed a great deal when they gathered in the library to go through the slide show of 'potential husbands' that Charlotte and Joseph had compiled for them.

The Princess and her friend sat in the front row with two boxes of Genovian pear popcorn while Charlotte, the Queen and Joseph (sitting on a stool, handling the slide show via a remote) sat behind them.

It was amazing at how many men they had managed to find, the Queen giving a hum of approval at the picture of Prince William, which, to Charlotte's amusement, scandalised Joseph with a "Your Majesty!"

Charlotte also couldn't help but notice that, when restless, Her Majesty stood up and wandered up behind her chair, next to Joseph and she, out of the corner of her eye, could see him reach over and touch her shoulder gently for a moment before the slide show continued.

It took some time, but they finally found an 'appropriate' (or, to quote the princess, "he seems decent") future husband for Mia- Lord Andrew Jacoby, Duke of Kennilworth.

"I will call his family tomorrow and discuss the situation, and hopefully he would be amenable to such an agreement," Her Majesty said once the young people had gone upstairs and it was only Charlotte and Joseph present.

"Are you sure that he will agree to it?" Joseph was unusually edgy, but Charlotte couldn't blame him, she wasn't enthusiastic about the plan either (again, what on earth was parliament thinking?) but there seemed to be no other solution…

"Wouldn't you, if you were asked to marry the future Queen of Genovia?"

"I wouldn't condone an arranged marriage for two people after only a month."

"What WOULD you have me do, Joseph?" the Queen finally snapped, glaring at him as she stood and strode towards him. "I am trapped either way I turn, and I'll be damned if I'm going to let Viscount Mabrey take the throne for his nephew! It's bad enough that I have to have Lord Devereaux stay here just so I can see if there is any mischief going on…."

"That was your idea," Joseph protested.

"True, but I despise having to do it just to keep an eye on a conniving snake…I… I…." she paused for a moment, seemingly losing steam, before heaving a deep sigh. "Anyway, there is nothing I can do, so this is what I must do. If you have any suggestions, Joseph, please feel free to give me them…. until then… good night, Joseph and Charlotte," before she brushed past him and exited the library.

Charlotte and Joseph stood there silently for a moment, stunned at the Queen's outburst, before Joseph sighed as he unplugged the computer and began rolling up the cords.

"Joe…."

"I know… I just feel helpless- it's unfair to the both of them, but I too don't want the Von Trokans or Mabrey on the throne….we'll just have to make the best of it, I suppose."

000

Happily, the young Lord Jacoby was willing to accept an arranged marriage, and it was only a week later that the Princess and the Duke announced their engagement.

Both looked as happy as they could be, given the situation, Charlotte reflected after the presentation to the people, but surely… there had to be some doubts. The young man came from a good family, was well educated, kind, intelligent and generous, as well as handsome- but there surely had to be more to contribute to a marriage- what about love, passion- and while Mia clearly liked him, it wasn't enough… she was far too spirited for him.

The maids were whispering (never in hearing of the Queen or even Charlotte, but she had her sources who informed her of what others were saying) that there was a fiery, spirited flirtation between the Princess and the visiting Lord Devereaux, although whenever they met, it seemed to end badly- such as the garden party, when the Princess met her grandmother after having fallen into the fountain with said Lord Devereaux.

"When will she ever grow up?" the Queen groaned quietly to Charlotte later that evening, once the Princess had gone to change and Lord Devereaux was again chatting with Lily.

"She is trying, Your Majesty."

"But trying not hard enough….honestly, I don't need this right now!"

It was true- the Queen did not need additional hiccups, albeit accidentally, provided by the Princess- parliament, while being out of session for the summer, were a constant presence at the palace; the press were making constant theories in the papers and on the television about the upcoming wedding and whether it would actually happening; Lord Devereaux, while a nice young man, was causing mischief by just being present at the palace… and almost more importantly than anything else… Joseph had proposed to the Queen a week after the Princess's arrival.

Thankfully, there were few details about the proposal itself, aside from being in the garden pagoda and the gardens being discreetly waved away as the Queen and Joseph discussed the latest incident with the Princess (being caught in a closet with Lord Devereaux) but one of the gardeners reported to Charlotte later (and he promised that he had not told anyone else about what he had witnessed), they were chatting quietly in the pagoda, sitting down next to each other, before he took her fingers in hers…..

It was what Charlotte had been hoping for a long time (and she knew that the Queen wanted that too, although she never revealed her feelings to most, and even Charlotte had only seen a softening in her in the recent years, although she had seen moments between her and Joe) and she knew that it was a clear and easy decision, but as the days and weeks slowly passed, and the Queen began looking more and more tired, more stressed and….more withdrawn…. Charlotte realised, sharply, that the decision was threatening to tear her apart…and then, the scene in the ballroom… a scene that she had tried to creep out of but she was frozen to the spot, horrified at what she was witnessing…

"Have you been thinking about us?"

"Yes… yes I have," she said slowly, raising her head from his shoulder- they had been dancing only moments earlier- and Joseph regarded her for a long moment, the silence between them growing, and it wasn't a peaceful silence either.

"I see," before he began walking away and the Queen, revealing more emotion than she had in a while, ran after him, arms outstretched, trying to grab at his hand but Joseph kept pulling away.

"You have to understand, it's the monarchy, as Queen it's my responsibility..."

Suddenly, Joseph turned back to her- yes, he was losing patience with her, Charlotte could see that, but she sensed that he was hoping that she had changed her mind, she was going to say yes… but before Her Majesty could say anything, he spoke:

"Clarisse, you were the someone that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. However, if you wish to see me as your Head of Security, I shall oblige... Your Majesty," he bowed his head to her and then stalked back out through the curtains he had entered, leaving the Queen alone in the ballroom.

Charlotte took several beats, giving the older woman a chance to gather her emotions, before she stepped into the room, pretending that everything was normal and she hadn't witnessed that heartbreaking scene… but she obviously hadn't waited long enough when….

"CAN'T I have just one second to myself?" Clarisse suddenly almost shouted, tearfully, as she turned away from Charlotte, her hands trembling with anguish before, a second later, she turned back to Charlotte with an apologetic look. "I'm sorry, Charlotte... I'll get something...from the kitchen... later."

"I understand, Your Majesty," Charlotte said simply, not upset that the Queen had yelled at her- after what had just happened (and had been happening over the past six weeks) it was amazing that the Queen hadn't 'lost it' a lot earlier.

"No, Charlotte, I shouldn't have shouted at you, you didn't deserve it," Clarisse said, embarrassed that she had yelled at her loyal assistant. "I..." she was about to continue but Charlotte, who had descended the stairs, stood in front of her and held up a hand, looking at her intently.

"It's alright, Your Majesty, I understand," she said firmly and the two women's eyes met and held until the Queen- Clarisse- realised that she did, truly, understand.

0

"Are they crazy? Why on earth didn't she say yes?" Scott almost shouted later when, upon seeing a sad and sober Charlotte huddled over a cup of tea, he had insisted that she come with him on his tour of the perimeter and she had told him the story. "Surely… surely she could have said yes and then… they could have married after the coronation."

"I don't know… but I know that Joe didn't allow her to explain things properly," Charlotte said bitterly, a twinge of anger towards Joseph. "He just… walked out on her… and she… she was devastated."

"Well, maybe she should have said yes, then," Scott replied tartly.

"Neither of us knew what was going on between them, so we shouldn't judge… but he should have understood the pressures Her Majesty is under at the moment."

"Yes, I'll admit that he probably should have waited… but hasn't he been waiting long enough?"

"Haven't they both?" Charlotte asked gloomily.

There was a heavy silence then as they continued their stroll around the dark palace lands before Scott cleared his throat.

"So… what do we do now?"

"There's nothing we can do, really."

"We can bang their heads together," Scott suggested and Charlotte smiled at that.

"True… but I think we're going to have to wait until after the wedding and then… we could do some brainstorming…."

"That sounds like a plan- after the wedding, we're going to work together to get them back together. Deal?" he held out a hand to her and she shook it.

"Deal."