*does a little jig* Thank you all so much for the overwhelming love! This story has broken the fifty-review mark! :D I'm so happy! XD You all are too kind to this dull authoress.

Okay! *takes a deep breath* I hope that this chapter lives up to your expectations. Remember, Cor Meum is Latin for My Heart.

Okay... no longer all in italics... let's try this again.

Please enjoy. I do not own Skip Beat… because if I did, this would be happening in the manga. Prepare to drown in fluff, my darlings! ;D

Ren then placed the tiara – a delicate silver structure with pink crystals surrounding a stone similar to Corn – on her head, and whispered, "I crown thee Princess Kyoko, ruler of Cor Meum – now and forever."

Her eyes were wide, her mouth was open, and a single tear rolled down her cheek. This really is a fairytale… and I don't ever want the magic to end. I don't want to wake up from this dream, for it all to vanish again with the buzz of my alarm. Please, anyone who listens… don't let this be another dream of nightmares. Let me live in my fantasies… let me dream of impossibilities. Please, for once in my life… let me have my fairytale.

"Princess Kyoko?" Ren whispered as he stood behind her, almost close enough to touch. "Art thou not prepared for thine coronation?"

She blinked at him, another tear spilling down her cheek, before what he'd said connected in her brain. Hiccupping, she shook her head and dashed away her tears. "No, I am prepared, and thank you a thousand times over for my lovely tiara, but…" her lashes lowered, and she slipped into her self-character, "…but what am I to call thee? Art thou a knight, or…?"

It was his turn to blink as he recognized the weight of what she was asking him. "I," he murmured, after a moment's pause, "am whatever my lady asks of me." It was true, he mused. When she needs a scolding, I become her sempai. When she needs a confidant about something Kotonami-san will not listen to, I become her listener. When her roles are acting up, I become her teacher. And today…. He swallowed, and watched in the mirror as her cheeks colored. Today, if she wants me to be her knight in shining armor, I shall be. And if, by some wild stroke of dream, she should accept the second half of my offer… then I shall take on a new role.

She nodded, once, and did not meet his eyes in the mirror. "I thank thee, sir knight." There was an odd hitch in her voice, but he did not register it as he once more learned his lesson: Never, ever, ever, ever expect anything vaguely romantic when Kyoko is involved. It only leads to a broken heart.

"Art thou ready to depart, Princess Kyoko, now that thou art properly attired?" he stepped back from her slightly, so that she had enough room to turn around without bumping into him. When she did so, he offered her his arm.

"Will I be informed of our destination in a slightly less cryptic manner this time?" she inquired with a smile, taking the proffered limb.

"I told thee our previous destinations in perfectly straightforward manners, my princess," he smiled in return at her touch, smile, and light tone. "Did thou think it not so?"

Kyoko did not respond; she could not had she wanted to do so. His smile – the grudge-killing heavenly smile – had been combined with a teasing set of words, and… a new address. Yes, he called her 'princess' on the phone every evening, but to have him claim her as his princess… that was just because he was a knight, right? Knights have a sworn duty to the crown. That must be it…it must be….

But isn't he also a prince, according to the Royalty-treatment?

They would be a matched set… her face heated, and those thoughts were banished far more quickly than Ren would have liked, had he known the direction in which they were heading. Instead, she focused on the hallway in which they stood – for Ren had stopped walking when she had failed to give him a response – and was dazzled by the images with which it presented her. On all sides of the hall of mirrors, the floor-to ceiling reflective surfaces were showing a handsome prince paused in the act of escorting a beautiful princess. The golden sparkles in her skirts caught the light and gleamed much in the same way that their crowns – their shining, almost matching crowns, one of which had been bought specifically for her – did, refracting the light… making them look like… like…

"Faeries," she whispered, looking up at Ren – now more Kuon than Ren – in awe.

"Princess Kyoko of Cor Meum, located in the very bosom of the faerie realm," he confirmed in matching tones, forgetting to shield the emotions in his eyes. "As she was, is, and will be forevermore." He caught, then, her free hand – and pulled it to his lips, kissing it in gentle reverence. For she was his heart, and she was perpetually in the faerie realm – so who was he to say differently? Why deny something that was so obviously fact?

He released her hand, but only after brushing his lips once, twice, thrice over her knuckles. Her face was aflame – from his actions or from the look in his eyes, he would never know; he would never ask, and she would not have been able to say which, had he asked. She pulled her hand back to her chest instantly, her fingers curling in on themselves protectively. Though he knew that she was just in shock from – and probably embarrassed by – his actions, he could not help but have a faint fancy that perhaps, just perhaps, she was curling her fingers to keep the sensation trapped in her hand.

…Which she was doing, in some deep part of her – though she would never say that, not even under threat of torture. Under threat of losing her best friend, maybe, but torture? Never, not even in a thousand years.

"Would thee like to ride a noble steed, Princess Kyoko?" he inquired, well aware that if he did not speak now, the rest of the afternoon would be lost to her over-thinking and ruling against his actions in her heart. Besides, he had planned this day for her… and there was still so many ways left for her to enjoy herself.

"A noble steed?" she breathed, snapped out of her reverie.

"Yea," he nodded. "And I know just the place. Shall we be off?"

She swallowed, and pushed her foolish notions of reciprocation out of her mind. A smile spread across her face, making his heart flutter like the faeries she so loved. "We shall."

"Then to the carriage go we!" Ren exclaimed, sweeping his free arm grandly in the direction of the door – and promptly hitting it against one of the mirrors, as he had misjudged the space in the hall. The tension dropped abruptly.

"A-Art thou well?" Kyoko inquired, caught between concern and amusement.

"Yea, my princess, I am as spry as a chicken's gullet," Ren assured her as they began walking.

His sentence had the desired effect; Kyoko's laughter bubbled over at this nonsensical simile, and the tiny worry line disappeared from her forehead. He was treated to the sound of her laughter all the way out to the car. Only after he'd handed her in, gotten in, and turned on the car did her giggles peter out – and that was only because she began singing along with the Disney music again. At a stoplight, he glanced sideways at her, grinning, and found her singing to her tiara – she'd taken it off temporarily, and was holding it very carefully as she serenaded it with "I See the Light."

"Which movie is this from, by the way?" he inquired softly as he continued driving, silently wishing that she were singing to him, not her tiara. (She was, but he had no way of knowing that, as she wouldn't admit it even to herself.)

Kyoko turned to stare at him, open-mouthed and wide-eyed. "It's from Tangled!"

"Is that one good?" his tone was casual. "I've never seen it."

"Y-You've never seen Tangled?" Her eyes were full of pity. "But…but… it's a Disney movie! A Disney princess movie!"

"I just never had anyone to watch it with."

"What about Maria-chan?"

"She wasn't much for princesses at that point, unfortunately. It came out around her dark period, remember?"

Kyoko's eyes widened. "So do you think she hasn't seen it, either?"

"Hmm… perhaps. I'm afraid that I don't know."

Kyoko let out a wail of distress. "How is this even possible? So many people close to me haven't seen one of my favorite Disney princess movies! You, Maria-chan, Moko – even taisho and okami-san hadn't seen it until taisho announced that we were having a movie night! Amamiya-san wouldn't watch it because she doesn't like animated movies, and Moko flat-out refuses to watch a princess movie of any sort! And now you haven't even heard of Tangled!"

When he gave no response – he was too busy driving and being thrilled that she'd listed him among the people to who she was closest, and first, at that (though this was probably due to her actually talking to him at the time, rather than being first in her heart – so he chided himself) – she continued her rant. He did not hear a word of it, and nearly missed their turn due to his elation.

"…so it needs to be remedied!" she huffed loudly, crossing her arms. The CD seemed to agree, as it let out the perpetually-startling yell that heralded the beginning of "The Circle of Life."

"And how do you suggest that it be remedied?" he inquired, shutting off the car after pulling into a parking space.

"Well, that's the problem! I don't know! Maria-chan should be fairly easy to convince; we just need to coordinate a time, which can be made easier – sometimes the president shifts my Love Me tasks so I can spend more time with Maria-chan. He's very considerate…." She trailed off, struck with a brilliant idea. "A Disney day."

He furrowed his brow, and experienced the wave of foreboding that always precedes utter doom. "Pardon?"

"A Disney day," she beamed excitedly, putting her tiara back on her head with apparent glee. "The president has so many themes… he could do a Disney day! That way Moko and Amamiya-san would have to watch one, and you might be able to see at least part of one during your lunch break!"

"So I'll get to skip lunch?" he teased, unbuckling his belt.

"Knowing the president, he'll have a TV put in the cafeteria for the day," she replied, doing the same.

"But with my schedule, I still won't be able to see all of one, and there's no guarantee that it'll be Tangled," he reasoned.

Her eyes widened, and despair returned to her face. "That's right! Oh, no…."

"I suppose that I could rent it from the library – they carry movies now, did you know that? – and watch it on one of my free evenings," he mused, "but it's no fun watching a movie alone."

He hurried out of and around the car, watching with mild amusement as her face when from elation to depression. As he opened her car door, he heard a small "Oh…."

"So would you be willing to sacrifice an evening sometime to watch Tangled with me?" he asked, holding out his hand to help her out (the skirts of her dress were slightly cumbersome when getting in and out of cars). At the indecision in her face, he extended his hand slightly closer and asked, "Don't you trust me?"

"Yes, I do," she responded, giving him Jasmine's smile and her hand. "I'm willing, but… I thought you didn't know Disney movies."

"I never said that. I simply said that I'd never seen Tangled." He offered her his arm.

She took it. "What about Mulan?"

"I adored Mushu," he chuckled.

"Did you see Frozen when it came out?"

"No," he admitted, somewhat guiltily.

"What? I even dragged Moko to that one!" she gasped. "Dishonor on you! Dishonor on your cow! Dishonor on your entire family!"

"Thank you, Mushu," he muttered, grinning.

She shielded her eyes, but grinned back.

"Why do you always do that?" he inquired, leading her to their destination and silently thanking the stylists at Telling for making him as unrecognizable as possible.

"Do what?" she blinked.

"Cover your eyes or cower when I'm just smiling at you," he answered, a bit of wounded puppy creeping into his voice.

"I—" she broke off, blushing, and stared at her feet. "P-Please don't ask that – it's of no offense to you, I like your smile – I just – just—"

"Just?" he prompted. Had he crossed one of her lines? Also, were the facts that she liked his smile (and had admitted it!) and was blushing reasons for hope?

She looked around wildly, praying for a lifeline, and saw one: Their destination. Her squeal of delight temporarily wiped the question from his mind, though it did haunt his dreams (he would not be given a proper answer until much later, when she no longer cringed from his smiles). He chuckled, and had to hurry his footsteps to keep up with her excited pace.

Before them spun a carousel – the closest one he'd been able to find (after many breaks' worth of internet searches), and a very beautiful one, at that. It had a variety of animals in addition to the horses, such as zebras, roosters, and even the occasional ostrich. The focal point boasted a lovely automated organ, which provided the music. The line for the carousel was mercifully short for four o'clock in the afternoon, and they were able to get on without having a long wait. This was fortunate, as Kyoko seemed far too excited to be able to wait long. They did have a brief wait, though, and during it Kyoko felt a light tug on the skirts of her dress from behind. She looked down.

A little girl – around three or four, if she were to hazard a guess – was staring up at her, wide-eyed. "A-Are you a princess?"

Kyoko blushed, and then nodded. "For today."

"You're boo-ti-ful," the girl continued, awed. "And your crown is weally pwetty."

Kyoko bent down so that she could see eye-to-eye with the girl. "Do you want to try it on?"

The girl gasped in delight and nodded, before looking back up at her mother for permission. The girl's mother nodded, and mouthed a thank-you to Kyoko, who beamed in response. "T'ank 'oo!" the little girl squealed as Kyoko placed it on her head.

"Do you see a mirror anywhere?" Kyoko asked Ren. At his confused look, she elaborated, "So she can see how it looks on her."

His searching glance yielded no mirrors, but it gave him the second-best option. "Do you mind if I pick her up?" he asked the girl's mother.

"Please be careful with her," came the response. The woman furrowed her brow; the man looked familiar… this thought was dispelled when her little girl gave out a delighted shriek. Ren had lifted her onto his shoulders so that she could see her reflection in the upper, darkened window of an unused ticket booth. The girl gasped in awe – now she realized that the man lifting her was a prince, and his princess had been kind enough to let her try on her tiara. When the line began moving again, Ren set the little girl down. She hugged his legs, then reverently handed Kyoko her tiara. Kyoko then knelt down to give the little girl a hug in return.

"T'ank 'oo!"

"Thank you," her mother smiled at the costumed couple. "This has made her day. She loves fairytales."

"So does she," Ren smiled and gestured at Kyoko, who was still talking with the little girl. "She had a rough month, so today is a cheer-up day."

The mother felt her heart melt a little, and found herself missing her husband. "That's incredibly sweet of you. She's a lucky woman. Is she your girlfriend or your fiancé?"

He shot a glance at Kyoko, who was now having a very serious discussion with the little girl about whether Aurora's dress in Sleeping Beauty should be pink or blue. "Neither, actually."

"You're married so young?" the mother smiled, watching as the two princesses (the little girl had been made a princess by her three minutes of tiara) agree that light purple would be a good color for Aurora.

"No, unfortunately. I've not even had the courage to ask her out on a formal date," he chuckled lowly.

"Then this is…?" the mother prompted skeptically, waving her hands at his attire.

"A combination of Truth or Dare and her having an awful month," he answered honestly. "She was hurt badly before, so I want to take things slowly with her." Part of him questioned why he was so willingly spilling secrets to this woman; perhaps he missed his mother more than he'd thought.

The woman smiled at him and took her daughter's hand. Kyoko rejoined the conversation, smiling from her utterly fulfilling Disney chat with someone who actually knew something about it. The woman said to her, as the gates to the carousel opened, "You are a very lucky girl. He's a wonderful man; keep him."

"I—" Kyoko paused, and absentmindedly smoothed down the front of her dress as she organized her thoughts. She smiled, softly murmuring, "I know."

Kuon's heart soared, and for a moment, Ren was swept away completely. He put a hand on Kyoko's waist as they slipped through the gates; she stiffened briefly, but did not pull away. He was heartened by this, and proceeded to have an extremely sappy smile on his face as he followed her around the carousel, looking at the horses. She eventually settled for a golden horse with false green crystals on its reins; he caught her by the waist and swung her up onto it easily. She grinned and arranged her skirts as he scrambled as gracefully as possible onto the black horse with golden reins directly next to Kyoko's. He was extremely thankful that he had not had to ride an ostrich, even if his feet still touched the floor while he was on the horse.

The carousel began, and Kuon found himself falling even more in love with Kyoko (was that even possible?) when he saw the absolute, innocent joy in her eyes during the ride. Really, he thought, watching her, I'm going to need to watch myself even more carefully after today. She's.… A thousand words flooded his mind, but none seemed quite right; they only captured part of what he was trying to say. Dad was right, he realized with a jolt. When you love someone, you can think countless ways to describe them without anything actually capturing the essence of them, the thing that makes you love them.

Kyoko looked as if she were flying, yet at once tethered to her horse by the pole—

She's free.

Free, he thought, watching her laugh without restraint, without a care for those who stared at her. She's freedom to me… something that seems so unattainable, and yet…

She caught his gaze, finally, when the carousel slowly bobbed to a stop, and beamed at him in return. He swung himself off of his horse and had his hands at her waist before she could move.

…and yet…

She gave him a new smile – a shy one, a hopeful one, one he'd never seen before, one that thrilled him to his very core – and placed her hands on his shoulders, allowing him to gently lift her down from her horse.

…and yet so deliciously close to my heart.

They lingered like that for a moment, her hands on his shoulders and his at her waist, before she stepped back with a fierce blush and distractedly smoothed down her skirts. They disembarked from the carousel together, and waved farewell to the little girl and her mother.

He offered her his arm, and she, still blushing madly, placed his hand on her waist. He became the personification of the 'large smile' emoticon. "Shall we return to the carriage, so that we may continue with the day's adventures?"

She gave a slight nod, her face a lovely shade of fuchsia as part of her consciousness berated her for her forwardness and lack of propriety. "We shall."

There you go, my lovelies. :D Did you drown in fluff?

The true purpose of this is revealed: Get Kyoko to slowly realize that there could be a slight possibility that Ren might harbor affections of some sort towards her. Let's see if it works as he hopes. ;)

I hope that you liked it! Almost all of it – well, a majority, at least – was typed while I listened to "I See the Light" from Tangled. It was then edited while I listened to slightly over half of the Aladdin soundtrack. I'm a huge Disney fan, in case you couldn't tell. ;D

Please review, if only to yell at me for needless fluff or to tell me your favorite Disney movie. Mine's a tie between Mulan and Tangled, though Frozen and Aladdin are still stiff competition.