Welcome to the Friendship Lands

Small drops of water, remnants of last night’s downpour, fell down from the yellow leaves of the trees, sometimes dragging them down. Ruki was amazed by all the green on both sides of the road. The last time she had travelled through a forest, all she had seen was shades of purple and pink from the prana. This forest marked the border of the new Friendship Lands, Taira had told her. She could hardly wait to get out and see her new homeland. They had left their inn three hours ago, not willing to wait any longer to arrive home.

Travelling through the east had been quite a revelation to Ruki. Of course, she had been here before, though not in this specific part of the east. But she had gotten so used to the wealth and luxury of the west, even in such poor parts as the cottage the Asana Bond had resided in for so long, that the scanty buildings they dared to call inns here truly did not resemble whatever she was used to calling an inn.

The east was just so much… poorer. Ruki had no idea if it was because the High Queens did not play the role Takato had in the West, or because the land was not covered in prana and therefore no one could ensure a proper harvest or prevent a flood, but ponies just seemed to have so little resources here. The strength of the east… had it really all but faded into nothingness?

Yet the ponies here did not seem unhappy. In fact, Ruki was convinced the ponies here looked happier and had less worries. Well, maybe they did… she was determined to find out why. But first, she wanted to see the Friendship Lands. Everything in the forest was so beautiful… she was not used to so many colors on one forest. The green on the ground, the yellow and red in the trees, the brown on the barks…

And then, suddenly, the forest disappeared and revealed a green valley ahead of her. The road twirled through it like a ribbon flowing in the wind. The trees that stood on every side of the valley were sparkling in the morning sun, the little river reflecting the sunlight back at the sky.
“Welcome, princess Ruki, to the new Friendship Lands.” Hikary smiled.
Ruki was amazed to see there were no ponies in sight. No buildings, no farms, no fields… the only sign of ponies living here being the road.

Still, it was beautiful. Nature lived here still, untouched by ponies in a way even the Ancient Forest could not match. And yet this was her country, the place she would call home…
“I can get used to this.” Ruki said, and everyone laughed.
“Let’s move on. It’s not that much longer to the castle. I wonder what you think of that, after spending so much time in Takato’s castle.” Taira smiled.

The twirling path led them through the green valleys and through the yellow and red woods. Ruki could not stop staring at all the colors. In all the weeks they had been travelling through the east, the land had mostly been barren. They had seen some forests and crop fields, and valleys and they even touched upon a desert, but no where had nature looked so natural and green as here.

“Is it just the Friendship Lands that are this green?” Ruki asked curiously as they passed a hill.
“No, it’s just this entire region. Deeper into the country you will notice it borders upon a large row of mountains. All sides of those mountains, with maybe the exception of the north, are covered in green like this. The Tokowa lands in the south, to whom we owe much indeed, are even more beautiful and green, as the weather is softer there.

And even more south… there used to be a lot of green there too. What I remember and what I have been told from the old Friendship Lands… this pales in comparison. Even the land around it was always so beautiful and alive… but not anymore.” Taira answered.
“Oh. Will it ever grow back to the way it was?”
“I don’t know. Maybe it will. Maybe, after a long time, it will come back alive once again. But I do not think that will be something I will ever see.”

“Well, I’m already amazed at this.” Ruki replied as she gazed at the beautiful landscape around her.
“Is it far until we reach the castle?” she asked.
“Not really. I think a few more hours. We’ll make it before sunset.” Hikary replied.
“Ah. That’s nice.” Ruki could hardly believe that their long journey was almost over. For weeks and weeks all they had done was walk and travel, and now they were finally here. Ruki had never travelled so long without stopping ever before, and she was glad it was over now.

After what seemed to Ruki like another five hours of travelling, they reached a large clearing. A hill ahead of her blocked the view of the clearing mostly, but she guessed there was open space beyond it too. “You can see the castle once we’re up this hill.” Taira told her. Ruki suddenly refused to wait any longer and started to gallop up the hill, letting the wind play with her hair as she ran.

It was not like Ruki expected. There was no city; there weren’t even farms. There were no ponies to be seen; only two roads led to the castle and both of them were deserted. At the foot of the mountain stood a lonely castle, its banners fluttering in the evening breeze. It was surrounded by a moat and a wall, but the bridge was pulled down so anyone could enter if they wished.

The five towers of the castle seemed to sparkle in the evening sun. It was a gorgeous castle, but compared to Takato’s not very big. Still, considering the amount of ponies she had seen so far, it was probably big enough. The valley ahead of her was not as green as the ones she had seen before; the grass seemed short and brown, as if hundreds of ponies had trampled over it.

“What do you think?” Taira asked as she reached Ruki. “It looks… nice.” Ruki managed to say. Taira laughed. “It’s nothing like ZoroAster, but it’s our home.”

They walked to the castle and entered the garden, which was rather unimpressive. All the flowers were gone and the trees and bushes were all still very young. Ruki remembered the castle had only been finished earlier that year, so obviously all the plants were still young and had to grow a few years. She was curious what it would look like next summer though, when all flowers would be blooming.

“Taira! Hikary! Stelline!” Someone yelled. The large doors of the castle flew open and a turquoise colored pony came running out. “Fleur!” Hikary yelled and everyone rushed towards the pony.
“I never thought you would be back today!” Fleur exclaimed as she hugged all the ponies one by one.
“Oh Yuuro, you grew!” Fleur said as she embraced the male pony.
“And…” Fleur stared at Ruki, who had stayed a bit behind the rest, unsure whether she should join in the happy reunion.

“Is that…?” Fleur asked, gasping.
“Yes, Fleur. This is my daughter, Ruki.”
“But… how… why… I mean…” Fleur stammered, obviously shocked by her appearance. Ruki couldn’t help but blush.
“Why don’t we go inside and explain it to everyone? I am sure Ruki wants to meet the rest of her family too. Ruki, this is your aunt Fleur. Fleur, this is my daughter, Ruki.” Taira introduced them.

“Nice to meet you, Ruki.” Fleur greeted her.
“The pleasure’s all mine.” Ruki responded.
“Shall we go inside? I really would like to see my daughter.” Taira said. Ruki only realized Taira did not mean her when they had already entered the castle.
“Is Frika in her room?” Taira asked. Fleur shook her head.
“Nah, she is in the nursery together with the twins.” She answered, and both Taira and Stelline trotted away into what Ruki figured was the general direction of the nursery.

“Shall we go see mother?” Hikary proposed, and everyone agreed.
Ruki followed her aunt through the tight corridors of what was her new home. The walls were richly decorated the rooms she could see were spacious and clean, with large windows looking out over the garden. I could get used to this, she thought as they entered a large room which appeared to be a study; there was a large, dark wooden desk in the centre covered with papers. The walls were filled with shelves, which were also covered with papers and maps.

“You’re back!” An older voice exclaimed. The purple pony sitting behind the desk got up and walked towards them, hugging Hikary and Yuuro before she noticed Ruki.
“Mother… this is your granddaughter, Ruki. Ruki, this is your grandmother… Regina.” Hikary introduced them.
“Nice to meet you.” Ruki said, trying to get the amazement off her grandmother’s face before she realized this woman was in fact the queen of this country, and she quickly bowed.

“Oh, my sweet child, no need to bow for me!” Regina exclaimed.
“I’m sorry, I am just so… how did you find her? What on earth happened there in the west? Did you find any clues for the stone, was Shanjahen helpful at all?” Regina asked Hikary.
“It’s a very long story I am afraid… shall we go to the common room and wait for Stelline and Taira to return before we start explaining?” Hikary proposed, and all agreed.

As they walked to the common room, which was apparently on the other side of the castle, Regina asked Ruki how their trip had been and how she liked the Friendship Lands so far. Ruki instantly liked her grandmother; she seemed such a sweet person and genuinely interested in how Ruki felt and saw things, without being nosy or pressing for details.

The common room was large and richly decorated as well, with lovely paintings on the wall and large couches for them to sit in. A servant pony rushed out of the room to prepare them drinks. The couch was a delightful change from the wooden benches and hard mattresses she had been sitting and sleeping on the past few weeks. Looking at the wooden table in front of her, Ruki noticed the wood was very different from that used in the west; it was so much darker and the texture was rougher. Would that be the lack of the prana that caused that?

“Oh my she’s gotten big!” Hikary exclaimed as Taira entered the room with a little foal following her. Looking at the little girl, Ruki had a hard time convincing herself that was in face her sister. A child of her mother and father, just like she was.
“Frika, meet your sister Ruki.” Taira said in a sweet voice.
“Hello Frika.” Ruki greeted the girl, realizing her voice sounded completely artificial. She sighed. She was definitely not good with kids.

The girl looked scared, and Ruki did not really know what to do. Frika looked like her and Taira, she realized. Her coat was also yellow though her mane was darker, orange instead.
“It’s okay. Frika is a bit shy. She’ll come around.” Taira smiled.
“My two girls…” Ruki heard her mother whisper. Her little sister… it definitely needed some getting used to.

Behind Stelline walked two children; a boy and a girl, both about five years old. Ruki had heard Stelline had two children as well; special children, born without a father. They were both white as snow, but otherwise they were not like Stelline at all; they were no unicorns, but normal ponies.
“I’m so happy you are back, mom.” The little girl said.
“Me too. I missed you so much.” The boy added, and Ruki was taken back to Shanjahen, who had wanted to kill Stelline… Looking at these two children, she realized even more that she had done a good thing indeed by defeating him.

The servants entered with cups and plates, and soon the table was full with sweets and tea. Everything smelled delicious.
“It is so good to have everyone back home. We must let Ivy know of your arrival as soon as possible.” Ruki remembered the name Ivy, her aunt who was apparently now a steward and lived in the older, smaller castle much deeper into the country.
“I will send a messenger tomorrow morning.” Fleur said.

“Good. Now all, tell me all about your journey and your adventures. Did you find any clues on a stone?” Regina asked. Hikary grabbed her backpack and took out the stone they had taken from Shanjahen.
“Oh my…” Regina gasped. “You found one.” She stated.
“We did.” Hikary confirmed.
“So that means there’s only one left… only one stone left whose whereabouts are still unknown. And we have about a year to find it.”