A/N: I love writing about our favourite couple on honeymoon (as you can tell); this is a different one, a more public honeymoon away from Genovia… let's see how we go

The Princess Diaries doesn't belong to me

CHAPTER ONE: POST CORONATION

"So, what are we going to do now?" Clarisse asked conversationally as she sat down on the sofa, kicked her shoes off and stretched her legs out, watching Joseph pouring them two glasses of wine from the bottle on the tray provided by the maids.

It was two days after the coronation, and while the excitement of the day (and the realisation that there was now a new Queen on the throne) would take a while to dissipate (and Clarisse didn't blame the country for being over excited and wanting to continue the celebrations for the rest of the week and beyond), Clarisse suddenly felt the urge to move on, to want to do something different- for once in her life, she was as good as free and the feeling felt good… in fact, it felt wonderful, as for someone who had been trained to be dutiful her entire life, to give her life for her country and her husband, but now she could afford to be a little selfish.

"What do you mean, what are we going to do now?" Joseph inquired jokingly as he sat down next to her and handed her a glass of wine. "I was hoping that we could enjoy a glass of wine together before meeting Mia for dinner… I don't know about you but I think I'm glad that the celebrations are almost over… it's been quite a week."

"Indeed…it's been quite a month, two months in fact," she said thoughtfully.

"Actually…the last 10 years have been quite….interesting," and she chuckled softly at his choice of words.

"Interesting choice of words, my dear husband."

"Well, you have to admit that they have been interesting," he protested. "You have not only good but bad times…" he paused for a moment, both of them remembering the painful times that she had undergone with the deaths of her husband and son, as well as the forced distance imposed by her eldest son and the years of aloneness she had endured (although he would argue that she wasn't exactly alone, he was always there for her, as was Charlotte and the rest of the staff, although it wasn't exactly the same) before Mia had come back into her life.

"And then….Mia came along and while things were definitely interesting for a time…."

"You're definitely under estimating that time!" Clarisse said ruefully, although she had to admit that life had been much more interesting and colourful since Mia had returned. "It's amazing my hair hadn't turned grey during that time!"

"Even if it had, I'm sure you wouldn't have let be shown…" he teased as he ran a hand through her hair.

"Would you have loved me if I had had grey hair?" she suddenly turned to look at him, her expression suddenly serious and Joseph immediately felt guilty that he had said anything.

"Of course, my dear, of course- I love you for your heart, your mind and your soul, not your looks…. You are the most beautiful woman in the world to me but, again, it's not just because of your looks but because of who you are in side….."

Clarisse listened to his words with a straight face but she finally couldn't stand it and burst out laughing, Joseph quickly joining in as he realised that she had been teasing him.

"You little…" he began before he pulled her towards him and kissed her sweetly. "Now that just confirms that you really do have a poker face, and no one knows what you're thinking."

"You've seen that quite a lot over the years, haven't you? But I usually cannot succeed with you as you know me too well."

"As I should!" he laughed again and she joined in, snuggling into him.

"So," she asked after a while. "What are we going to do now?"

"I told you…. A glass of wine and then…."

"No, no… I meant- now that Mia is now on the throne and we are both retired, what are we going to now? I mean, Scott could always need you in an advisory capacity…."

"As could Mia," he retorted.

"True enough…. But I was thinking…. We haven't really had a honeymoon, have we?"

"Well, we did have a tiny one," he joked, running a hand up and down her shoulder. "Goodness knows what people would have thought if they hadn't known we were newlyweds…" he joked and she smiled vaguely- they had been caught several times kissing and cuddling throughout the palace and….they had spent quite a bit of time in her suite, the doors locked, she thought with a blush but was what they wanted.

"Yes, we did… but I was thinking….I would like to do some travelling, away from Genovia, as a private citizen."

"What about me? Am I to remain behind and continue to advise Scott?" he joked and she smiled as she turned in his arms and touched his cheek gently with her fingertips.

"Of course, I could go nowhere without you."

"Practically or otherwise?"

"Both- practically, you are the best in the business, as they say, and I wouldn't want anyone else looking after me; and otherwise- I won't enjoy travelling as a private citizen, enjoying the world through a different perspective, without my husband…. "

"Good, I was a bit worried," but she knew that he hadn't seriously been worried. "So, do you have any ideas about where you would like to go, as a private citizen, away from Genovia?"

"Well, I do want to do some of the usual countries- England, France, Spain (maybe you could show me where you grew up), Switzerland…. but it's up to you."

"Nonsense, you're also part of this too… but you do know that we will still have to be accompanied by our own team of bodyguards? I can't do this on my own, not that I could or would do it."

"I understand that…hopefully they will not be so obvious when we're travelling-bodyguards attract attention, and not necessarily good attention and I just want to be myself, even for a little while."

"I understand that as well, truly," he said gently and he did- he had always seen her frustration over the years, having been viewed as simply a Queen and a wife and mother, an institution rather than Clarisse, a woman; he, on the other hand, had always viewed her as a person, Clarisse, a woman first, rather than the other way around- that was probably part of the reason for the success of their relationship.

"So?" she looked at him expectantly and he realised that she was waiting for an answer. "Are we going on a honeymoon, for at least a month, away from Genovia?"

"Can you be away from Mia that long?" he asked seriously- he knew that it would be difficult to leave, considering that she only just succeeded her grandmother and there was still so much to learn and the person who could teach her the best was her grandmother.

"It will be difficult, I will grant you that- I know Mia needs me now more than ever…."

Mia needs me now more than ever before….

The words brought up memories of another night, one in the recent past, when Clarisse had chosen to put others ahead of herself (although, seeing as the person was Mia, it was perfectly understandable, in retrospect- Joseph was still ashamed of himself for walking out on her) and had turned him down….but before the memory of the moment could bring them both down, Joseph squeezed her hand tightly.

"We don't have to go if you don't want to."

"But I fear that you will think me selfish for saying that I DO want to go…I know I should stay here, people are probably expecting me to stay here and help Mia through the first few weeks of her reign but….I need this…. WE need this….do you understand?"

"I do…and I'm sure Mia will too, once you explain it to her."

"So, are we going?" she looked at him anxiously now and he laughed.

"Give me a little time to get things organized- unlike other people, there are other things that need to be considered when planning a trip for you," he teased before he leaned over and lightly kissed her on the forehead. "But yes, consider yourself going on a long, extended honeymoon soon enough."