First and foremost, Athenia McGonagall, this simply could not have been written if it weren't for you. Thank you SO much. Secondly, this chapter is written by me (Christina), so if you hate it…don't blame Laura! Hehe We've both been preoccupied with prior commitments and I happened to have last night off when I got home from the studio. Thirdly, enjoy!

Chapter 7

"So, my love, where do we go from here?" Joseph said as he reluctantly pulled away from his Queen's sweet, and very much missed, embrace. He carefully caressed her cheek and jaw with the back of his fingers.

Clarisse closed her eyes and leaned deeper into his magical touch.

"I really am sorry for how I've been treating you. But surely you can understand what was going on in my head…"

"-Clarisse, if you feel as strongly for me as I, you, then I assure you I would have been just as miserable. But my darling," he said as he held her face gently and placed a soft kiss upon her lips and moved one hand from her face to her hip, "let's not dwell on it."

"I know Joseph, I've just missed you. So much." She lowered her eyes to his chest, almost bashfully.

"Well how about I let you decide on that intern's punishment, would that make you feel any better?" He smiled knowingly.

Clarisse returned his kind smile, but it soon faded when she remembered the unnecessary hard ache the young woman had subjected her to.

"…I'd even apologized to that awful girl." Returning her attention and eyes to meet Joseph she went on to tease him, "but she must really like you if she went to all that trouble to try to humiliate the Queen!"

Joseph chuckled at the flattery Clarisse was trying to pay him. "There's only one woman I care about liking me." He assured her before tapping her nose with his finger.

Clarisse took Joseph's hand in hers and kissed it gently while looking into his eyes. She then led him to the couch where they sat down together. Joseph sat on one end of the couch and Clarisse comfortably under his arm with her head laying against his chest and leaning into him with her legs spread across the rest of the couch.

Clarisse entwined her fingers with his hand that was lovingly lying across her shoulders. "Joseph, I've been thinking."

"Uh oh."

"Oh tosh," she playfully nudged him in the side with her elbow, "I actually think you'd be rather pleased with what I've got to say…"

"Oh, then do proceed." He held her free hand that was resting on his knee raising it to his lips.

"Well," she shifted to meet his loving gaze and returned the gesture of kissing his hand before
continuing, "let's get married."

Joseph blinked in astonishment, his eyes never leaving hers. He took a deep breath and gave her a look that could say nothing less than 'I beg your pardon?' But not in a disappointed way- no, not in the least, but 'I beg your pardon' in a way translating to a very bright 'I cannot believe this is finally happening.'

"Aren't you going to say anything, darling?" She smiled giving his hand a gentle squeeze and shifted to face him completely.

"I thought you'd never ask." Clarisse's smile grew wider and brighter, if possible. Joseph cupped her face and his bright eyes found hers. "Let's do it."

Clarisse threw her arm around his neck and leaped into his arms causing him to fall deeper into the couch, he couldn't restrain his laughter at her excitement.

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About five days had passed since their "engagement." When they made their official announcement at dinner that evening Mia and the Palace Staff were in no way surprised, but relieved and happy for the happy-again couple.

The pair settled in Clarisse's suite enjoying their first Friday night as a declared couple. They were quite comfortably lounging on the couch. Joseph was in his pajamas and black robe with his slippered-feet crossed on the coffee table reading a book and while Clarisse, in her nightgown and pale blue robe, leaned into him with her reading glasses peaking over the tip of her nose reading through various law revisions.

Clarisse set the pile on her lap and lifted her glasses off and closed her eyes. She slid her middle finger from her left hand down the sloping bridge of her nose.

"Everything all right?"

"Hmm? Oh yes dear, I was just thinking about the meeting with Parliament tomorrow morning." She held her left hand up with her right hand admiring her engagement ring Joseph surprised her with just a couple of days earlier.

The ring he had chosen for her was a platinum three-stone setting with pavé diamond accents creating a brilliant effect. They had discussed only the day before the consequences of Joseph taking Clarisse to choose her own ring and the public-discussion that would immediately ignite. Nonetheless Joseph knew Clarisse deserved an engagement ring. Her reaction to it made it quite apparent how right his decision was.

"Oh my…God, Joseph. It's the most…perfect ring I've ever seen!" Tears crept down Clarisse's chin as Joseph slowly and gently placed the ring on her finger. He lifted her left hand until the ring met his lips.

"Wear it when you think of me, my love."

"I'll never take it off." She concluded before she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and they were lost in a passionate embrace.

"You know, Clarisse. I'll be right there with you when we ask their permission to marry. And when they see how happy we are together I have no doubt in my mind they'll approve. And if that doesn't work, I'm certain Mia's wedding- spiel didn't hurt either."

Clarisse tilted her head slightly smiling at her fiancé.

"A penny for your thoughts?"

She thought a moment before responding and teased, "You'll have to give me more than a penny."

He smirked when he realized her hidden-meaning, "Anytime you want…a penny…I'll give you a penny."

Clarisse blushed before continuing with her prior thoughts, "Promise me you'll stay with me forever? And never let me go…"

"Always…and forever." He said while he stroked her jaw with his thumb. His thumb moved to her lips, caressing the creases before his lips followed suit. Joe readjusted so that Clarisse was lying atop and kissing him.

Hands traveled to now well-known territory and kisses grew sticky in their longing for each other. When Clarisse moved to untie Joseph's robe he put a finger to her lips, "May we take this to the bedroom, dear? I'm not sure how much more of these couch-affairs our backs can take."

Clarisse laughed at his sincerity and enthusiastically got off of him pulling him along to the bedroom with her, dropping her robe on the way.

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"You see, my love? I told you they'd approve." Joseph stood tall, looking handsome as ever in his tailored tuxedo whispering to his fiancée as she sipped her champagne.

Clarisse swallowed her champagne with an enormous effervescent smile on her face but members of parliament and their wives approached the couple standing near the fireplace, before Clarisse could respond, bidding them congratulations.

What seemed to be the last interruption for the next few minutes came and despite the fire Clarisse was getting chilly. It's always like that actually; the later in the day the cooler the palace grows.

"Would you mind facing people alone for a few moments, darling? I've left my gloves upstairs and I'm getting rather chilly."

"Am I not doing a good enough job keeping you warm?" He teased slightly tightening his embrace around her waist, feigning a hurt expression.

"Mmm, your turn to keep me warm will come after the guests leave, for now the gloves will have to do." She briefly tapped his nose, gently kissed his mouth, and gave his hand a gentle squeeze before ascending to her suite in search of her gloves.

Clarisse walked to her suite still unable to stop smiling. She felt on top of the world. Sure she had been through some pretty terrible heartache the past couple of weeks but it all paled in comparison to the fact that she would finally be marrying the love of her life.

The way Clarisse Renaldi felt for Joseph was nothing she had ever even dreamt of experiencing. She had finally allowed herself to be attracted to him shortly after Rupert's death, accepting that it wasn't "wrong" or in desperation. She'd never experience love, or even lust. All she shared with Rupert was obligation.

Hell, she had secretly wanted Joseph since his first day in the palace. Yes, she brushed that aside and decided it was wrong of her to…concoct such inappropriate thoughts about her staff. She felt in a way she was violating him by her mere fantasies. Not to mention, she was a married woman! She didn't even know if she would have enough courage to pursue Joseph if she weren't married.

When Clarisse entered her suite, her smile still hadn't faded. She was marrying the man she loved and wanted more than anyone in the entirety of her life and no one could take that away from her.

As Clarisse swung open the door to her suite she immediately spotted her gloves on the table. She walked quickly to them wanting to hurry back to Joseph. She hurriedly pulled her long white gloves on up to her elbows and turned to head back downstairs.

As Clarisse turned, a pair of large and strong arms tightly grasped her upper body pressing her arms to her body, too hard and forceful to be Joseph's, but before she could scream a red scarf was pressed to her opened mouth causing her to pass out from the chloroform apparently soaking the scarf.

The moment he was sure Clarisse was out cold he lifted her up and carried her to the couch. He then placed a folded piece of paper with typed writing on the coffee table, addressed to Joseph accompanied with a rose, before returning his attention to his Queen.

The Viscount knelt beside the couch and drew his finger smoothly across Clarisse's jaw. He pulled the glove off of her left hand, sneering at the new engagement ring placed on her finger.

"Now, let's give this consort of yours reason to worry." He spat out before admiringly looking to his Queen's legs.

Although her dress was long it was now resting just above her knee meeting her stocking. The Viscount moved to her legs and taking his time gripped one of her stockings at her thigh with both hands, very slowly sliding it down her leg. After staring a moment at her vulnerable position he grabbed the note and flower and moved across the room into the bedroom where he began tossing about pillows and the blanket and sheet and carefully laid her stocking atop the heap.

He walked back to Clarisse and slowly picked her up, enjoying every moment of touching her, and carried her through one of the secret passages.

"Did it go smoothly?" Claire asked, nervously wringing her hands in the dark and damp catacombs. "It certainly took you long enough."

"I've got her, haven't I? We should be so lucky it worked out this well, she must have forgotten something in her suite, the son of a bitch wasn't even with her."

"Well let's get her tied up before she comes-to."

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Joseph couldn't help be notice Clarisse hadn't returned yet and grew inexplicably cold with fear. He convinced himself to wait a couple minutes longer, 'perhaps she had to use the washroom,' he told himself.

He became distracted and approached by numerous congratulating members of Parliament and "friends" when Mia finally approached him,

"Heya Joey, how's it going over here?"

Joseph feigned a stern look but knew Mia saw right through him, "Where's Grandma, JOE?" She teased. "Better?"

"Much. And I'm not sure, I was about to go look for her actually."

"Aww, she's not getting cold feet is she?" Mia smiled, knowing her Grandmother loved Joe more than anything in the world.

"Factually, not figuratively." He smiled back, "Actually cold hands. She left about fifteen minutes ago to retrieve her gloves, and I find it odd that she hasn't yet returned."

"Fifteen minutes?! Did she lose them?"

"Hmm, I hope so. If you'll excuse me, Princess, I'll go and see."

"I'll only excuse you if you stop calling me Princess. Yuck."

Joseph chuckled at Mia's seriousness, "As you wish…Amelia!" He exited in search of his fiancée as Mia shot him another potentially hazardous stare.

Joseph entered the suite and nothing seemed out of order so he proceeded, "My love, are you having cold feet?" He mused, thinking of his witty retorts to Mia.

He walked further, into the suite thinking perhaps she could be in the bathroom but soon saw the messy bed and a note with a rose attached to it, as well as one of Clarisse's stockings.

Dear Lucky One,

Or shall I say, "Unlucky One," in this scenario? Your Queen is with me now, as it should be. But no worries, dear Joseph, you still strike the fancy of one attractive blonde.

We've got your fiancée and there's only one way you can come remotely close to having her back. We'll leave you directions tomorrow. Good luck, and may the best man win.

Joseph crumbled the note in contempt and hatred. He immediately knew who was responsible and vowed to make them pay. He pounded his fist into the wall before running to the security room.

He pushed through the door out of breath, "Have any of you seen anything even remotely suspicious?"

"Uh no, sir, and we've been watching the cameras all night." Shades offered, he stood and walked cautiously to his friend. "Something the matter, Joe?"

"The Queen is missing. I want you to watch and re-watch every single tape from tonight. I want every angle covered and I'll be back in a few minutes to check up." As soon as Joseph finished his sentence every security man in the office jumped to his feet rushing about and communicating with every other security guard in the palace through their headsets.

Joseph reentered parlor and cleared his throat, "Excuse me ladies and gentleman," he said nervously, he wasn't prone to speaking in front of this class of people but continued for the sake of finding Clarisse, "Her Majesty sends her deepest apologies but she isn't feeling well and we think it best that she retire for the evening."

As he spoke, he prayed that this were the case. He wished that Clarisse were safe and warm in her bed, with him on his way to take care of her and see to her every need, instead of being wherever she may be harmed by two of the most heartless and awful people he had ever come to know.

"She does however send her most sincere gratitude to each and everyone one of you, as do I." He felt his voice grow weak but needed to continue, "It means so much to Clarisse and myself that you've found time in your busy lives to celebrate the love we have found in each other."

'You are not going to cry, old man. Save it. You need to find Clarisse.'

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As Clarisse teetered on the brink of consciousness, she felt the cold stone beneath her and slight headache marring her thoughts. As dim light invaded the peaceful darkness, she could hear voices, ones she recognized. As she stirred, a blade of ice suddenly touched the side of her vulnerable neck.

Her gaze followed the blade up to the eyes of the beholder and gasped, "Don't even think about moving, Your Majesty." Claire spat out before seductively moving the blade down Clarisse's chest.

Clarisse shivered in fear she moved her gaze to Viscount Mabrey, "Claire, you know that's my job." He smiled sardonically.

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The moment the final guest left chaos broke out in the palace. Joseph frantically organized the search for Clarisse. He had finally gotten her to agree to spend the rest of her life with him, privately and publicly; he wasn't about to give up.

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Meanwhile in the dank unused chamber in the catacombs Clarisse sat on the floor while her assailants plotted. Her evening gown did nothing to hide the chill and as a result she shivered profusely. She let her gaze fall on the tight ropes cutting into her wrists and ankles. She noticed her shoes were taken off and along with one stocking.

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Later that night after Joseph faced that there was no more he could do, and he knew Clarisse would want him well rested to continue in the morning, so he returned to her suite. He sat in her favorite chair (the chaise by the fire, the one she reads in every night) and held the white glove she'd initially returned for and began to cry into it, terrified. Moments later he noticed the scarf on the floor, he gently set the glove on the chair and walked to it, his eyes never leaving it. It looked very familiar but he could not put his finger on it. He smelled it and his suspicions were right, she was suffocated with chloroform.

He recalls it from the day Claire was asked to leave.

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The whole of the castle is pulled apart, every measly and dusty inch…from secret passages to staff member's rooms. Everyone is looking for what they know is there but no one can find. They know by watching endless surveillance cameras that the Queen is still in the castle, but because they've searched every corner unsuccessfully, they are out of their minds with worry. They promise themselves they will find their beloved Queen.

You see? We told you it would be continued. Hehe And once again:

To be continued…

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