The Duke and Duchess of Clarence

Chapter Twenty-Five: Earthshot Prize 2023

7th of November 2023 - Mediacorp Theatre, Singapore

It had not been announced before hand, with the decision coming rather last minute but there was no doubt that people were pleased to see the Duchess of Clarence appearing at the award ceremony for William's awards. 

Climbing from the car, Adeline looked beautiful in the rented gown that she was wearing; she had made sure that she stuck with the themes of the event, she knew that it would not do to turn up in something brand new. 

There had been little time to find something but the dress that she was wearing was perfect, she had loved it from the moment that she had tried it on. 

Catherine had remained back in London under the guise that George was preparing for exams since he was expected to take entrance exams for Eton College in the coming months with William and Catherine already having visited with him. 

Eton was not far from their home, it would allow him to come home instead of boarding as William had done; keeping their eldest son close as he grew up. 

However, the real reason was that Catherine had been unwell in the past few months and it had been kept quiet from the public so that they did not worry the people after everything that had happened. 

Catherine had carried on with dignity and grace, despite her ill health carrying on with her schedule as best as she could given her illness. 

Adeline smiled for the cameras, waving to the crowds as she stepped onto the red carpet for the awards; she knew that it was rare that the two siblings stepped in on one another's projects. 

Adeline was thrilled with how her literary awards were going, they had been held in South Africa this year and would be in held in the Bahamas next year; she intended to visit each of the commonwealth nations with the awards before branching out to other countries. 

There were hopes of royal tours to come, with one being carefully planned for the King and Queen before the rest of the family would be allowed to undertake their own tours. 

Adeline could only imagine how long the tour would be when her father and Camilla would undertake, if it was anything like the Queen had undertaken when she had become monarch then they could be gone for months with William and Adeline acting in his stead. 

In August that year, celebrities including Olivia Colman, Dame Emma Thompson, and Chris Packham signed a letter urging Prince William to add a vegan category, warning that without a transition to plant-based diets the planet cannot be preserved. 

Hannah Waddingham and Sterling K. Brown hosted the awards ceremony while pop stars Bastille, OneRepublic and Bebe Rexha gave musical performances. 

Actress Cate Blanchett presented one of the awards while actress Lana Condor, wildlife conservationist Robert Irwin, actor Nomzamo Mbatha, and actor Donnie Yen took turns introducing the winners of the other categories. 

It was a amazing to see so many people come together, willing to do things to make a change to save their planet; William had put a lot of work into the Earthshot Prize to make it work. 

Nothing had been handed to him or Adeline when they set their minds to it, they had worked for what they had and did their best to shine spots lights of things that they felt worthy. 

Adeline was always so proud of William, she saw him coming into his own and making his role his own; she could not imagine the pressure that he felt as the heir to the throne. 

Making her way into the theatre, Adeline smiled and greeted those around her before she spotted a very familiar face within the crowd that made her pause a little surprised.