I would like to dedicate this chapter to my best friend Aglaia, who's been sticking with me ever since I started writing RD- thank you so much for your help and support!!!

Taira's coronation

Taira gazed into the mirror. The make-up, the purple cape with satin brim, the ring... Apart from the lack of a crown on her head, she looked every bit a queen. She knew that. In a few hours, she would be queen. The responsibility that had burdened her mother for all these years would be hers to bear. And she was ready. She could do it. She had done what she had wanted to do before she would even think of accepting the crown.

She'd fixed her mistakes as well as she could. Some, she would never be able to mend, but she'd still spend her entire life trying. She would never be a better queen than her mother, she knew for sure... but she would work as hard as she could to live up to her mother's legacy. It was the least she could do.

“Taira? Are you ready?” A voice asked from the other side of the door. Her moment alone was over Taira thought as she put down the hairbrush that she had been holding.
“I am. Feel free to come in.” She told Fjaril, whose voice she had instantly recognized. Her husband entered their room and after he had closed the door he couldn't help but stare at her, making Taira blush.

“What do you think?” She asked.
“You look... amazing. Truly. I knew you were beautiful, but this... no one will doubt who is the new queen today, I can assure you that.” Her husband told her as he walked towards her.
“Thanks, dear. Hikary said the same thing. It does look good, uh... Although it feels a bit weird to be wearing my mother's cape already. I'm not queen yet...” Taira sighed as she stared at the cloak in the mirror.

“The cloak is not a sign of the queen, my love. You know that. But I understand why it must feel weird.” Fjaril said.
“I know. Thanks love...” Taira kissed her husband on the cheek.
“Is everything finished downstairs?” When Taira had been down for breakfast, only two hours ago, everything had still been a complete mess, leaving her to wonder hoe it would ever be cleaned up in time before the ceremony. With so many guests sleeping both in the castle and already arriving, surely it would be a tiresome task and she didn't envy the pony who was assigned to it.

“Surprisingly, yes. Everything is tidy and the decorations are in place. You won't believe the sight of so many spring flowers around the castle and in the throne room. You really picked a proper time of year for this ceremony. The guests have almost all arrived now I think, and they are seating as we speak. I think it's time you come downstairs now- I don't think your mother will want to wait much longer.” Fjaril said.

“You're right. We should go.” Taira smiled. She knew she would have to wait until all the guests were seated and the ceremony would start. It would be an agonizing wait, but staying here staring in her mirror surely wouldn't help. As she stepped out of the room, following her husband, she realized this would be the last time she would be in her own bedroom as a princess of the Friendship Lands. When she returned, she would be Queen.

Hikary sighed as she gazed over the ponies in the valley. So many had come... and most of them were either royalty or mayors or other important figures in the politics of the world. The only exceptions to this were some civilians from the Friendship Lands, who had come to attend the coronation of their new queen. As there would be a special event for the ponies of the country in summer, not many had shown up now, but Taira and Regina had specifically stated none would be refused. Taira would be their queen, after all, and Hikary suspected Regina especially considered her citizens more important than far-away royalty.

Royalty, however, had shown up in large numbers. Hikary could easily spot queen Katine, of course, and queen Asilde, somewhere in the front. In the valley, they had created two huge columns of seats that looked out at the stage, both columns consisting of about twenty-five rows each, and all of them were full.

The stage was covered with red cloth, and there was an unbroken line of flowers around the edge. They had created a large bow made out of the same flowers at the back of the stage, in front of which the ceremony would take place. Combined with the view of thousands of flowers of the valley, it was indeed like a fairy tale.

Of course, holding the ceremony inside the throne room was not an option. Large as it was, it was simply too small to hold this many ponies. However, the dinner, which was only for a select few, would be held in the throne room later that night, so they had spend hours decorating it anyway, and the cooks and maids were already busy preparing the feast.

“Is everyone seated?” Stelline asked.
Her younger sister wore a very thin cape which was almost see through so that you could see the wonderful markings on her body.
“Not yet. They're still directing a few guests to their seats I think, but it won't be long now. I don't think there are more ponies without an invitation either.” It had been a slight problem when a small amount of ponies showed up without being on the guest list, but they didn't want to refuse anybody.

“You look stunning.” Stelline said.
“Thanks. So do you.”
As princesses and sisters of the future queen, of course they had been ordered to dress up as prettily as they possibly could. So, Hikary wore a necklace with a pendant in the shape of a rain drop with a pearl inside, and similar-fashioned hairclips that held her hair up.

On top of the hill, the two sisters waited until all the guests were seated. The front row was empty of course, for it were their seats and they would only enter at the start of the ceremony. While they were waiting, Ivy and Fleur joined them, both of them looking stunning and more mature than they had ever done. Fleur's blue lock had been curled, as was her tail, and her body was covered by a richly decorated light-pink cloak. Ivy's hair was sparkling in the sunlight. She was wearing subtle silver jewelry that somehow seemed to match her purple mane.

As they stood there, waiting, Hikary was painfully aware of the gap that existed between them. They were not complete... and they would never be complete again. Her sister Trixiebelle, who was nicknamed Joker and whom she had never met, who had died in the eruption. Crystal, who had been murdered by the Earth Guardian Aras. And lastly, Twinkle Star, who had given her life so that they all could live, and be there this day.

“There comes mother.” Ivy said.
Indeed, Regina approached them from the castle. Her mother was wearing the queen's crown on her head for the last time, and she had never looked so royal and proud as she saw her daughters waiting for her.
“Mother.” Hikary said, and intuitively bowed before the woman who also still was her queen.

“Girls...” Regina smiled. “Is everything ready?” She asked.
Hikary glanced at the rows of ponies and realized all were seated now, and the servants were retreating to the back.
“It seems everyone is there, and seated.” She concluded.
“No.” Regina whispered. “The last guests are only now arriving.”

Hikary gasped as she saw a twinkle on the horizon. It quickly grew bigger and soon enough she realized it were the five guardians- Saule, Fiume, Roze, Rasa and Laima. The five landed gracefully in front of the stage and instead of sitting down, they decided to stand next to it, and Hikary guessed this would not be the only role they would play in the ceremony. As the five landed, the entire group of guests grew silent.

“I'm sorry! Are we late?” Ruki's familiar voice said as her young niece came trotting towards them, her baby sister following her.
 Stelline's children were already seated in the second row with their maid, but as Frika was Taira's daughter and would soon be second in line, she would arrive together with her older sister Ruki. Silently Hikary wondered if the energetic girl would be able to stay quiet for so long.

“No, my dears, you are not late. Your mother is not here yet either. But I suspect we will start soon.” Regina said as she stared at the five guardians, standing as still as the wind on a warm summer day.
 Hikary smiled as she saw her two nieces up close- they both wore the same necklace and bracelets, although Frika's were a lot smaller- they were silver like Ivy's jewelry, but both the necklace and the bracelet had a crown-shaped pendant, and Hikary quickly realized they were replica's of the original pendants her sisters still had.

As she looked at her nieces, Hikary saw that Taira was approaching now as well. As she got closer, Hikary could see her sister was wearing her mother's cape and ring, and she looked every bit a queen. Hikary's heart filled with pride. Her sister, who had once carried the dame dark fate as she had... would now be queen. And she would be there at her side- she'd always be there, like she had always been. She would support Taira and help her, like a second daughter was supposed to. Looking at her niece Frika she realized the little girl would one day play that part for Ruki, and Hikary gently patted the anxious girl on her head, who looked at her slightly confused. But until that time was there and maybe even after, Hikary would be there for Taira, and help her become the best queen the Friendship Lands had ever seen.

When her mother had reached them, Ruki noticed all her aunts slightly bowing before her, so she decided to join in. Even little Frika bowed for her mother.
“Taira... are you ready?” Regina asked.
“As ready as I will ever be.” her mother answered. Regina nodded.
“Good. Then, let's get started. You all know the order.” As they had rehearsed this part about five times, Ruki was certain they all knew. She motioned little Frika to stay at her side while her aunts formed a long line.

As had been apparently customary in the old Friendship Lands, they would enter the ceremony with the one furthest removed from claiming the throne first. This meant that her aunt Fleur walked first, Ivy followed her, then Stelline, and then Hikary, after which Ruki would enter with Frika. As Frika was too small to walk alone, they would enter together. Fleur moved forward and after allowing a proper gap to exist, Ivy followed.

Ruki watched as, one by one, her aunts entered and all the guests got up from their seats and stared at them. Once they reached the stage, they bowed and then walked to their seats but did not sit down yet. When Hikary had entered, Ruki motioned her little sister to follow her. She could feel the eyes of all the guests upon her as they entered.
“Sis... they're looking.” Frika whispered.
“Ssshh.” Ruki said as gently as possible as she motioned Frika forward while trying to look as regal as possible.

Once they reached the stage they turned to face the public and bowed before taking their seats. She glanced Yuuro on the second row, next to her father, and he winked at her. As befitted an old eastern tradition like this, there was no role for men, and Ruki wondered silently if this would change too now that the breach was gone. Next to her father she saw her grandmother's sisters, Regala and Damina, Lady Marana and Damina's daughters Testi and Vesti, who Ruki had only met the night before. Of course, Prince Stanno was also there because his wife was lady Regala's daughter.

Once she and Frika were standing in front of their seats, Regina entered. Everyone bowed deeply before the queen who had created a country out of the ashes of the horrible tragedy that had struck their old home, and Frika and her were no exception. Regina did not stop in front of the stage but instead walked on it right away, and turned to face her audience. As she nodded, everyone got up and sat down in their chairs.

“My dear guests, my beloved family, my dear, dear citizens,” Regina began, “Welcome, first of all, to my wonderful country and to this ceremony. I am truly grateful that you are all here, that so many of you have faced long journeys to get here. There is nothing more I could have asked for. So, I would like to start by thanking you all for coming. Thank you.

While thinking about this speech, I realized I did not know where to start. When I attended my mother Medina's ceremony, I was still very young and I never suspected I would one day become queen, so I'm ashamed to admit I can't remember her words very well. There is one thing, though, that I will never be able to forget- the love for her country.

But that country, together with her, vanished that one night. Only a few of us survived, and even fewer managed to gather around me. With my mother gone, I automatically became queen in their eyes. I never had a ceremony. It was not like I ever thought it would be, but I knew I could do nothing but work hard to provide for these ponies who looked at me for guidance.

Thanks to my dear friend queen Asilde of the Tokowa Lands, we managed to live here, secluded from the outside world, for fifteen years. We were all hurt so much by what we had lost, we never even dared to look outside. This meant that we never realized we were not the only ones who had survived.

Many more survivors of the eruption joined us over the past seven years, and many others beside them. Some of them were my dear daughters. Stelline, Twinkle Star and Crystal... Two of whom are not with us today. Two of my daughters sacrificed their lives for this country. I would like to remember them now, Crystal and Twinkle Star but also Trixiebelle, my beautiful daughter who perished way too young in the eruption like so many others. So for them, and for all the others who can not be here today, I would like to ask for a moment of silence.”

Instantly, the only thing Ruki heard were the birds in the trees far away. Her aunts, two of whom she had never even met... They should have been there today. In a fair world, they would be here now too. But if there was anything Ruki had learned, it was that the world was never fair. She would never meet them, and she'd never see Twinkle Star again.

“This country as it is today was not build by me alone.” Regina continued. “I can not claim to be the reason the towns are ever expanding and the fields continue to produce more crops. For I am only one of the ponies who build this country. If it weren't for my wonderful citizens, who together managed to overcome fear and grief and fought for a renewed country, none of this would matter. I hope that during the past years, I managed to guide them all as best as I possibly could. I certainly tried, and only time will tell if it was enough.

But now, a new dawn is rising. The world has been saved, and it is time for a new generation to take over. My daughters Hikary and Taira... during the first years of their lives, they knew only darkness as they were captured by the earth guardian, Aras, who tried to abuse them to get his revenge on the Goddess Vitalia. He failed, and my daughters broke free. And now, today, it is time for them to take their place in this world. Taira, please come forward.”

As her mother walked towards the stage, everyone got up once more. Taira walked gracefully and smiled a pure smile. Like Regina, her mother did not stop in front of the stage but walked onto it, stopping in front of the queen and bowed.
“Rise, Taira.” Regina said after a moment, and her mother stood up.

“Taira. The past few years, you have already proven your worth as a citizen of this country and as a princess. You traveled all over the continent to gather the five stones we needed and at the same time you managed to deal with local affairs. The past few months, you took over parts of my work already to prepare yourself, and you were never shy to ask or learn. I do not think there could be a better time for you to take over from me. You are ready, and I have confidence you will not disappoint.”

Without any notice, the eldest guardian Saule flapped her wings and lifted herself into the sky, only to land on the stage in between Regina and Taira.
“Princess Taira of the Friendship Lands, daughter of Regina and descendant to the High Queen Taira of Old. Are you willing to take up the task as queen of the Friendship Lands, and all the duties that come with that position?”

“I do.” Taira answered.
“And do you promise to live for this country and the ponies that inhabit it? Do you accept your role as guide and mentor, as example and teacher, and will you do whatever lies in your power for the ponies? Will you, like all your ancestors before you, acknowledge you must answer to the Supreme Goddess through your actions and decisions?”

“I do.” Taira answered once again.
Ruki saw the Guardian shine brighter as she flapped her wings just once to release a cloud of sparkles. She then lifted the queen's crown from Regina's head using only her mental power. The crown floated slowly towards her mother and landed on her head gracefully. As the crown began to shine like the Guardian's body, Saule said
“Then, ladies and gentlemen, Heirs to ancient lineages, I present to you all: the new Queen of the Friendship Lands!”