The Duke and Duchess of Clarence

Chapter Seven: State Reception

18th of September 2022 - Buckingham Palace

Ahead of the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey, the royal family were hosting a reception for the visiting heads of state and representatives at the palace, which was one of the largest gatherings of heads of state in history. 

There was no where to turn within the palace were you wouldn't run into someone of importance it seemed, the conversations were loud and flowing as the heads of state and representatives of 121 countries intermingled together. 

The first official photographs of King Charles III and Queen Camilla with the Prince and Princess of Wales and the Duke and Duchess of Clarence had been shared earlier that evening. 

They were joined in their hosting duties by the Princess Royal and Sir Timothy Laurence, the Earl and Countess of Wessex, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, the Duke and Duchess of Kent and the Princess Alexandra of Kent for the reception. 

Everything was set for the funeral tomorrow, everything had been rehearsed to the best of everyone's abilities and it was surreal to think that tomorrow they would all be saying their final farewells to the Queen. 

Thousands of people had filed past the spot in Westminster Hall were she had been laying in state for the last four days, the queue having closed earlier that day with people being turned away with the last person to pass by the Queen's coffin and pay their respects being Black Rod Sarah Clarke after members of the parliament had paid their respects at 10:45pm the night before her funeral. 

Adeline couldn't have been more grateful for Simon and his family at this time, she could never thank Anne and Edmund enough for helping as much as they had with the children. 

Daphne, Sebastian, Helena and Albert were all adjusting very well to what had happened and had been kept away from the public eye as much as possible during this time as well as the constant coverage of the death of the Queen. 

It had been a great comfort especially knowing that they were protected in all of this, Adeline had been pretty much none stop working since the Queen had passed. 

Even tonight as she spoke with world leaders, her husband not far from her side as they heard lovely stories from those who had come to pay their respects to the late Queen.

The guest list was large, with several former prime minsters expected to attend the funeral tomorrow and the travel for many heads of state and representatives carefully planned out for the occasion to not cause congestion. 

Everything would be carried out in military precision and nothing was being left to chance, the plans that the late Queen had put in place years ago being carried out just as she had wished it. 

"You remind me of her," Queen Margrethe stated with a sad smile, approaching the only daughter of King Charles; she had been watching Adeline for awhile now and she had to admit that she saw a lot of the late Queen in her. 

It was hard for the Queen of Denmark, she was now Europe's longest-reigning current monarch, the world's only Queen Regnant and the longest-serving incumbent female head of state after the passing of her cousin Elizabeth. 

She had announced that she wished for a number of adjustments to be made for her upcoming celebrations to celebrate her Golden Jubilee. 

"I always wondered how you were going to turn out, especially with what happened to your mother as such a young age. I am relieved to see that you have become a woman much like your grandmother," Queen Margrethe noted, she knew that it had been a blessing really especially in the wake of the constant attacks that come from her brother and his American wife.