Regina's request

Twinkle Star flapped her wings again, and enjoyed it just as much as all the previous times that evening. She tried to remember the last time she had soared through the sky like this, but she could hardly remember. Was it when she had travelled from her aunt Regala’s little village to the old Friendship Lands? It had to be, she hadn’t been alone ever since. Sure, she had used her wings once to save Aline, but it was not the same as flying free through the sky. It was a freedom she couldn’t really describe, but it pleased her so much more than just walking on the ground, being bound to the earth. Yet for the four days she had been travelling now, this had been the first time she could actually do it. She didn’t dare to fly during daytime, and every time she had found an inn short before night would fall, and she still valued a nice meal and a good bed above flying.

But an hour ago she had talked with two travellers who were coming from the opposite direction, and they told her the next inn was more than three hours walking away, and she had blamed herself for not getting up early. Then she had realised she could travel three times as fast by flying, and there were no settlements as far as she could see, so she thought it would be safe to fly for a while. And she was glad she did; she had hidden her wings for way too long. She had been glad to realise her wings still worked properly, and didn’t began to ache after some use. She hoped she would be able to use them some more on her journey, as it would not only make her able to travel a lot faster, but also would make her enjoy it just a little bit more.

She almost felt disappointed when she saw the lights of a small settlement on the road below her. She decided to land a good distance from the village, for she wanted to avoid being seen. The soft sand of the dunes made her landing soft, and with some regret she made her wings disappear. For a moment she wondered if she couldn’t fly the entire night, but then she realised she was way to tired for that; she had walked all day as well. When she was sure all evidence of her flying were erased, she walked towards the little town. There were only about twenty houses, scattered on the land. She wondered what these ponies lived off; she saw no sign of farming, and as far as she could tell they were not that close to the see so that they could live on sea food. It didn’t take her long to find the inn; a large sign hung above the door. She was somehow relieved to see this in was a lot busier than the previous ones she had slept in; at least five guests were eating at the table, but it was not crowded. She was rather confident there still would be a place left for her to sleep.

She was happy to find out she was right; she got a nice bed in a three-person room, but there were no other guests in the room. After she had her dinner she went to sleep; she wanted to travel quite a bit again tomorrow so she had to get up early. Her bed was below a window, but there were no curtains, so she had a clear view of the cloudless sky. She liked to look at the stars, for she could do it anywhere, but wherever she did it, it would always be the same. Would Aline be looking at the same sky at this moment, too? Without Crystal to keep her company, Twinkle Star felt she was thinking of her friend more and more. She found it was hard to admit to herself how much she missed her, yet it was even harder to hide those feelings. Once again she promised herself, that she would go home as soon as possible.

Softly Aline knocked on the door of Stelline’s bedroom.
“My lady, your breakfast.” She said as she opened the door. Stelline was still lying in her bed. It was almost non already, but Stelline found it hard to eat anything early. The pregnancy was taking almost all of her strength, which was one of the reasons Aline was assigned to take care of the princess, and do only that. Nobody really knew why her pregnancy was so hard on her, but the queen suspected it was because the child was a unicorn’s child; a child conceived by the mother only. Her body not only had to create the child’s body, but also the complete soul, which usually came from both the mother and the father. Since unicorns hadn’t existed in at least two hundred years, nobody had experience with things like this, and of course all the old books about the subject were gone, so they had to improvise. But Stelline said that she felt fine, and only was really tired, so they were probably doing a fine job.

When Aline looked at her princess, she once again noticed how large her belly had become the last few weeks. The child was due in four months now, at the end of winter. She put her tray on a table next to Stelline’s bed, who smiled grateful to her while she tried to sit up a bit.
“Shall I open the curtains for you, my lady? There is a nice sun outside, the light of day would do you good.” Aline had already advanced to the windows.
“Oh, that would be nice, Aline. Could you maybe open the window a little bit for me, too? I would enjoy a bit of fresh air.”
Aline nodded graciously and began to open the curtains. The light of the day entered the room and when she opened the small window, Aline suddenly realised how dull the air was inside.
“How is everything going on in the castle?” Stelline asked as she took a bite from a red apple.
“Everything is going fine, my lady. Tsuyo is supervising the delivery of wood for the winter at the moment, while your mother is busy with her daily tasks. Both Ivy and Fleur are studying again, which they don’t really enjoy, but the Queen insists they are thought basic skills as writing graciously and mathematics. She feels the country has grown of late, not only in the amount of inhabitants but also in importance in the world.”
“So she told me. Are your lessons going well?”

Aline sighed. Since a few days, she had lessons in court manners, and how to behave as a lady of old nobility. One of the old ponies who had survived the eruption and now lived in the new Friendship Lands had lived as a servant to a steward family, like hers, and the queen had arranged she would teach Aline all she could about what she had to know. She had been shocked to learn that when she got married, she had to cut her hair to prove she was no longer a little girl and that she was ready to serve her queen. Well, as the only surviving member of the steward families, she was determined to change that rule.
“The lessons are going fine, my lady. It  is nice to learn the old ways of my family.” “Do you not regret that your own parents were never able to teach them to you? I heard my mother would be delighted to meet them.”
“I’m not really disappointed, no. It’s so hard to imagine my parents as noble ponies. I mean, All I can remember is that they are hard working ponies with their own vegetables store in a small village. Though maybe… I will go back someday and ask them to come with me and live here. We might be able to help the queen, take up our old place in the kingdom. I don’t know, it’s just so far ahead, something like that…” Aline noticed her mind had begun to wander. “I better focus on things I have to do now, like taking care of you, my lady. Would you like me to refresh your sheets?”
Stelline smiled at her. “Later, maybe. I plan to take a short walk in the garden this afternoon; it is, indeed, beautiful weather. While I am gone, you have all the space and time you need to clean. Now tell me, how is Junai doing?”

By hearing his name alone, Aline had to blush. Junai, her boyfriend… She had seen him only yesterday, when he came to help the queen. It was hard for them to be together, but the queen sometimes granted her a day off so she could spend time with him.
“He is doing fine, my lady. However, we are both busy with our daily work, so it is sometimes hard to be together. But I enjoy my work, and so does he, so neither of us feels bad about it.”
“That is good to hear. He seems like a really nice man.” Stelline replied. “he is,” Aline said dreamy, “He truly is.”
“Worthy of fathering the heir to a steward family?” This question caught Aline by surprise. She had never even thought of that. Would she and Junai… And Even so, the heir to a steward family… Somehow, she had never thought of her future children that way.

“I’m sorry, Aline.” Stelline offered when she noticed Aline was startled by the question.
“Maybe it’s not something to worry about yet. Could you maybe return the tray back to the kitchen? I would like some time on my own now. If you would come back in an hour, you can help me with my little garden trip.”
Stelline began to laugh. “My, I’m beginning to sound old! But I’m afraid I am going to need your help there. I don’t want to be in bed all day, my body needs a little exercise to keep healthy.”

Aline nodded to the princess. “I agree with you, my lady. I will be back in an hour.” She took the tray, and noticed Aline had eaten all the food she had prepared, which didn’t happen all the time. Maybe Stelline was indeed regaining a bit of strength. She usually left her room once a day, but most of the time Aline had to insist on it. This was the first time in quite a while that Stelline offered to do it on her own. Aline left the room with the tray, and walked through the hallway towards the kitchen. She was surprised to see the queen in the kitchen; she had been convinced the queen had been busy this day.
“Good morning, my Queen.” She said, and Regina looked up.
“Oh, good morning, Aline dear. It’s a fine morning, isn’t it? It hasn’t been this clear in quite a while. I am afraid it’s rather cold outside, though.” Aline put the tray on the table.
“That’s true, my lady. Princess Stelline has told me she wishes to go outside later today, but I fear she will catch a cold. I think we should get her a warm cape or something.”
“Oh, I’m afraid the winter clothes I ordered won’t be here for a few days. You can take my cape for her, for I want her to be warm and comfortable. It’s in my large wardrobe, you can’t miss it. The white one with black spots.”

“Thank you, my Queen.” Aline thanked her, as she began to clean the bowls Stelline had used. She didn’t know what to say to her queen, but she didn’t really felt comfortable with the silence either.
“Have we received any word of Twinkle Star and Crystal yet?” she asked after a while.
“Oh, no, my dear. I had hoped they would be home by now, but I’m afraid we have to wait a little longer. It’s almost a month’s journey from Madash to here, and they had to spend some time there as well to do their research. And we don’t know how long it took them to get there. But don’t worry too much about it, I am sure they will be home soon. Crystal and Twinkle Star can take a good care of themselves.”
“I know, my Queen. It’s just that… I’m afraid I miss Twinkle Star quite much.” Aline told her queen.
Regina gave her a sympathetic smile. “I know. I miss them both, too. I hope they’ll stay home for a while once they have returned.”

Regina took a small pause, but Aline could see in her face that the queen wanted to say more.
“Aline…” She said at last, “There is something I have wanted to ask you for a while, but it is hard for me, because I don’t want to put pressure on you.”
“go ahead, my queen. Feel free to ask anything.” Aline tried to say as open as possible, but she feared her anxiousness was clear in her voice.
“Well… I have noticed your relationship with Junai has gone in a steady direction lately. I feel you two thrust each other, and are a nice and stable couple.”
Aline had to blush. “That… I guess that’s true, my lady.”
“Well… you may have noticed the country has been expanding this year. And ponies with children born here… those children are growing to be of age to live on their own within a few years. More so, the country’s importance has increased, for example princess Togli’s marriage to prince Stanno in Kin. She might have never lived here, but at her wedding she was announced as a princess of this country, and so she is. I feel it is time for me to expand my royal structures. I can no longer rule this country alone. The valley on the open side of the mountains is ours by right, too. Tokowa has granted it to us all those years ago, but we never thought of adding it to our kingdom; it was large enough for us. However, I am beginning to feel the need to expand. With my family grown, and with Stelline being pregnant… We might need those new lands. But I need someone to help me govern the new areas. A local ruler, so to say, not unlike the steward families used to be. I seek to restore the status of steward to my kingdom, Aline.

I first thought of asking my younger daughters, but I fear they are not ready yet. Twinkle Star, I fear, should not be bound to the lands by a position like this. It would do her no good. Crystal, I fear, must take up the position as queen’s advisor. Stelline had asked this of her back in Kin, and she had already agreed. Ivy might be able to do it, for after all, I raised her to rule one day, but I want her to be steward of these parts of the land. Fleur is way too young, and I fear she would not be happy with a position like it. She has never been able to handle responsibility well, and she is just too free minded of spirit. I have other things planned for her future, that fit better by who she is.”

The queen took a short break, and looked at Aline. She already felt what was coming, and her mind raced. Did she want that? Was that her future? The reason she was brought to these lands?
“You probably already feel it coming, Aline, but… I want to ask you formally. I have noticed you are a stable and smart person, and you are in a good relationship. I want to ask you if you want to take up the task of being Steward of the western part of the Friendship Lands. I ask you for your personality, your origin, and for the fact that I believe you will be able to carry the task well. Aline of the Friendship Lands, are you willing to take up this task and restore the status of steward to the Friendship Lands?”