from Verna’s Customs of Calatini

Created during a magicless blood-kith ritual, friendship stones were once popular across Calatini, but have become mainly a country ritual in modern times. People used to believe friends who created friendship stones would be friends forever (or until they destroyed the friendship stone), but friendship stones possess no magical or spiritual power.

In a friendship stone ritual, two friends select a stone that evokes aspects of their friendship. For instance, two genteel friends would select a smooth stone, while two wild friends would select a jagged stone, and two amorous friends would select a heart-shaped stone. According to myth, the stronger the resemblance, the stronger the friendship stone.

Once they select their stone, the two friends cut their left palms and allow blood to anoint the stone while describing their friendship. Usually the friend who requested the friendship stone goes first, and the ritual is performed in a place and time special to the friends.

After the blood ritual, the friendship stone is allowed to dry for three days in a bowl of sand or loam. Then one of the friends, usually not the one who requested the friendship stone, keeps their friendship stone in a special place.

If friends with a friendship stone decide to end their friendship, they can destroy their friendship stone by scraping the blood from it while stating their reasons for no longer being friends. This ritual is usually performed in the same place and time they created their friendship stone.

No magic is used when creating friendship stones, which is why they possess no magical or spiritual power. However, a witch could magically infuse friendship stones, but that risks irrevocably binding the friends’ life forces and preventing romantic relationships with others. (Essentially they inadvertently enter into a bloodbinding.)