Chapter Text
September 8, 2022 - Clarence House
"Diana, you have a call from Balmoral. It's Lady Agnes Windsor."
Camilla Parker-Bowles, Princess Diana's lady in waiting said as she held on to the receiver of the phone that was outside Princess Diana's study. Princess Diana promptly stood up and took the receiver of the phone from her lady in waiting. She noticed that Camilla had a despondent look on her face, as if to tell her that she was about to receive bad news from Lady Agnes Windsor.
"Aggie, it's Diana here." Princess Diana then proceeded to speak, hoping that her cousin-in-law wasn't going to give her bad news after all.
"Di, they need you at Balmoral." Lady Agnes told Princess Diana in an urgent tone, "The Queen...she's dying."
"But she was very well a few days ago," Diana told Agnes over the phone, "She even met the new Prime Minister!"
"Well yes, there's no denying that she was well a few days ago," Agnes went on to explain, "But she is dying now. She needs to see you and Charles. You have to come here to Balmoral immediately."
"Aggie, can you tell me what is going on there?" Diana asked her cousin-in-law, "Well besides the fact that Mama could be dying."
"Well there are people spreading fake news on Social Media that the Queen has died," Agnes went on to explain, "But don't worry, I've told Royal Communications and the BBC to dispel these. In fact, the BBC is now running rolling coverage to combat the fake news of the Queen supposedly being dead already."
Lady Agnes Windsor was not just a member of the Royal Family, she was also a respected media figure in the United Kingdom. She had started off as a singer who performed in music television shows and then became a radio personality for the BBC Radio where she met Lord Patrick Windsor (the son of the Duke and Duchess of Kent) for the first time. They later got married right after the Queen's Ruby Jubilee. Right after her marriage, she was offered a part-time position with Royal Communications as one of the Royal Family's liaisons to the British media. She was eventually promoted to the Queen's Media Secretary just before Prince Harry's marriage.
"Alright Aggie, Charles and I will fly up to Balmoral as soon as possible." Diana told Agnes in an assuring tone.
Then, the call ended and Princess Diana faced her lady-in-waiting and told her, "Get Charles, tell him that Mama needs us at Balmoral."
But before Camilla could place a call to the Prince of Wales' office to inform him that he and his wife are urgently needed in Balmoral, the Prince of Wales himself has appeared in the Princess of Wales' office.
"Diana, mummy needs us to be at Balmoral." Charles, the Prince of Wales said as a matter of factly.
"Yes, I know." Diana answered, "Lady Agnes called from Balmoral."
"Well, we have to go now." Prince Charles told his wife.
"Mama, we're here." Diana said as she held on to the Queen's hand.
The Queen looked very frail, but she was still conscious enough to acknowledge her daughter-in-law's presence. She held on to Princess Diana's hand tightly and gave her a reassuring smile. Then she opened her mouth to speak to her.
"Diana, I'm glad that you and Charles made it here." The Queen told her daughter-in-law. Then, she turned to her eldest son and said, "Charles, your reign as King is about to begin..."
Your reign as king is about to begin...
Those words echoed in Diana's mind because those words could only confirm what she has long suspected since getting the call from Lady Agnes - the Queen was really in fact, dying. At this point, she was already alluding to her eldest son becoming the monarch; and...
"The next Queen...well Queen Consort that is, is in this room as well..." The Queen said as she looked at Diana once again.
Those words hit Diana's heart so hard, it was like being back at her stepmother's deathbed all over again. Six years ago, Diana's stepmother, Raine had passed away. She was also in the room right before she died. Raine had also said her last words to her which sounded reassuring yet sad. Raine had told her that she would have loved to live much longer to be able to see her stepdaughter become the Queen Consort.
"Mama..." Diana told the Queen, "I..."
"Yes, I know that you want me to live much longer," The Queen told Diana, "And I'm sure a lot of people want that too. But you see Diana, all good things come to an end too..."
"Mummy, surely you could reconsider..." Charles told his mother in a somewhat defeated tone, "I know Diana and I are way old enough to handle this country but nobody does it better than you do..."
"I have served my people for seventy years," The Queen told her son and daughter-in-law, "Seventy years is quite a lot of time. If I were to choose, I would have loved to stay on much longer but alas, my time in this world is almost up. I know this will be hard for all of you but I want you all to know that you will have to stay strong for our beloved Kingdom."
"Well mama," Diana told the Queen as she continued to hold her hand, "If it is the case, then Charles and I, we promise to continue your good works."
"Mummy, as Diana said," Charles told his mother, "When you do pass on, Diana and I will do you proud when it's my turn to be on the throne. We won't let you down."
"That's what I'd like to hear..." The Queen told Charles and Diana, "My passing will be a sad time, no doubt, but you two will have to stick to your new duties when I'm gone. You two are there to reassure people that things will be okay even when I'm no longer here."
Lady Agnes Windsor watched the exchange between the Queen, her heir and the future Queen Consort with tears in her eyes. Agnes has seen hell as a young woman in the form of, among other things, the controversies that the Royal Family had to endure throughout the Queen's reign and she thought whatever strength she gained from surviving that hell was enough to keep her strong in this moment - it turns out that she did not have enough strength to conceal how she truly feels from the Queen.
"Agnes..." The Queen said upon noticing her niece-in-law breaking into tears, "It's okay Agnes. I know you are a strong woman but you can let it out. You are here because I want to be able to speak to you for the last time."
Princess Diana looked at her cousin-in-law and told her, "Aggie, I know how hard this will be for you. Let Mama know what you'd like to tell her before it's too late."
"Diana's right, Aggie," Charles told Agnes, "This might be the last time you'll ever get to speak to mummy. If there's anything you want to tell her, you should let her know already. If you need Diana and I to step out of the room, we'd be glad to oblige."
"T-thank you." Agnes told Charles and Diana, "I would appreciate if Her Majesty and I could speak privately."
Charles and Diana nodded and excused themselves from the room, leaving Agnes with the Queen for what is going to be their last conversation.