Standing at the top of the stairs to the Palace, Amelia was overwhelmed by the huge expanse of crowd that had literally packed itself into every available nook and crany of the plaza, people itching to get a look at their monarch. She almost lost her composure...she wanted to turn and run back into the Palace as fast as she could, but glancing to her right, she caught sight of Verle grinning beside her, and suddenly found some much needed confidence.

Amelia slowly made her way down the stairs, careful not to trip on the long skirt of her gown. It had been so long since she'd worn a dress of any kind, let alone one this elegant and fashionable, that she'd almost forgotten how hard it was to move in them. Still, she hadn't forgotten how to present herself with a dignified fashion, like her mother had once taught her, and to the unsuspecting eye, nothing would have seemed out of place, or odd about her behaviour.

Reaching the barrier at the bottom, she smiled warmly, using her smile to mask her nerves, and started to walk along it, shaking hands and thanking people for coming, just like Verle had suggested. Each time someone presented her with flowers, she accepted them gratefully, thanked the person who'd given them to her, then turned and handed the flowers to one of her handmaidens so that she could continue on down the line. She had no idea if this is what she was supposed to do, but then how could she be expected to shake hands and accept more flowers if she had her arms full?

Eventually she reached the end of the line, and after accepting three more bunches of flowers, Amelia noticed that someone was holding out an ornate carved box for her. Remembering Verle's earlier warning, Amelia froze for a moment...it felt like a lifetime but must have only been a second at most, before she made a decision as to what to do.

"Thank you for your kind offer, but I am afraid, for the safety of those around us, and myself, I cannot accept your gift personally. But please feel free to give it to one of the guards and they can pass it on to me. I'm sorry, but I hope you understand."

The owner of the box gift said that of course they understood, and should have realised this before, and was more than happy to pass the gift on to one of the guards. This left Amelia free to finish the procession and then she finally returned to the Palace, letting out a huge sigh of relief when the doors had closed firmly behind her and the handmaidens.

"Well that went as well as could be expected, didn't it," she grinned at them, then winced. "God, my throat's killing me. How do you manage to speak like that all day, Verle?"

"A lot of practice" Verlé smiled back, "You did very well today, now the only thing we can do is wait.... From the expressions of the people we saw today, I think they were convinced that you were actually me.... But it is the media that will be the greatest thing to conquer.... If they realize that you were in fact a decoy, they won't mind.... They know that we often have such things.... But if they simply write about how "I" made an unexpected visit to the Plaza out of goodwill, then we will know for sure that you are ready to progress to the next level of training...." They began to make their way up the grand stairs of the palace, back into the Queen's private chambers where the handmaidens would help Amelia get her original look back.

"I hope you found the dress comfortable enough, I have to say, there are some that I wear that are not such a nice experience to endure! For now, you deserve to rest! If you go to the banquet hall, you will see that I have laid out a grand dinner for you, fit for a Queen.... I will join you all later on.... But I want you to enjoy yourself while we wait to hear from the presses...."

"Thank you," Amelia nodded. "I'm exhausted...and hungry come to think about it...And I have to admit this dress is far comfier than I first thought. Well, thank you again, and I've decided I'm going to keep my fingers, toes, arms and legs crossed that it worked today. See you later, Your Highness."

Bidding farewell to the others, Amelia made her way back to her room to freshen up first, before heading down to the banquet hall and the feast that was awaiting her.