(A/N: Shit is about to hit the fan next chapter and I hope ya'll are ready!)
On a bright summer day, Andromeda was sitting in her garden. Queen Cassiopeia had surprised her with her own garden on her 19th birthday, shocking the princess. As the gardeners worked around her, the beauty read a book on a stone bench, the sun shining down on her.
Her curls were twisted on top of her head in a bun and a pretty green dress was draped over her body. The dress matched the necklace that dangled from her neck that, for the life of her, she could not remember where she got it from.
It had been a year since the incident that no one spoke of and Queen Cassiopeia made it her duty to make sure no one mentioned Asgard or anything to do with Prince Loki. She made Cosima throw out all of Andromeda's journals; she made Ares erase all scripts with Prince Loki's appearance in them. The queen wanted to make sure her daughter would not be triggered and get upset with her missing memories and as long as she stayed on Earth, she would not remember the world that she left behind. The mother had also sent a decree through the land that no one was to talk about Andromeda's absence or the plagues that had been bestowed on them by the Gods; for fear of angering the princess about things she wouldn't remember. Queen Cassiopeia even tried to take the emerald necklace off of the princess' neck, but it burned her fingers.
When she had told Andromeda to go to the oracle, she knew what the treatment would entail. She figured that it would be better for the young princess to forget all that she had experienced than it would be for her to suffer with the memory of what could have been. Her beloved husband agreed with her and when Andromeda woke up from her slumber they were happy to find that she did not remember anything associated with Asgard; including Loki.
Because of this, Andromeda did not remember the deal she made with her mother. Though the queen could have taken advantage of this; she did not. Instead she allowed Andromeda to have another year of freedom, but she could sense that her daughter would not last the year without getting married.
Andromeda flipped the page in her book and chewed on her lip as she read. She absentmindedly hummed out a tune and basked in the sun's glow. She paused in the middle of a sentence and looked up in the sky, shading her eyes from the sun with her hand. She felt like someone was watching her and she used to think it was just the Gods looking over her but it felt more personal. Closer, somehow. She stared into the blue sky for a moment more before returning to her book, picking up from where she left off.
The sound of a baby cooing brought her attention away from her book and she looked to the double doors, smiling when she saw her friend Iola and her nephew Andres. "Good morning Iola!" She greeted, reaching for the baby that was named for her as soon as his mother sat down.
"Good morning, Andromeda." Iola greeted with a smile as she handed her son to her best friend. "How does this day treat you?"
"Wonderful." Andromeda answered in a coo directed towards Andres. The baby giggled and reached for her face, his chubby hands patting her cheek. "How are you?"
"Wonderful as well," Iola replied, smoothing out her dress, "Andres and I have been out running errands. I wanted to come to you to ask if you would like to go to the bay with us."
Andromeda beamed as she bounced Andres, "Of course! I will alert the guards so we will have proper transportation and accompaniment."
An hour later Andromeda, Iola, and baby Andres were walking through the bay market together, along with three guards that were more for the princess than her two companions. The guards were carrying satchels full of free items that vendors were gifting to the princess.
"Princess! Please try my beauty cream made from crushed pearls!"
"Princess! Please taste my new crop of fruit!"
"Princess, won't you try my cocoa bean dish?" That last one caught Andromeda's attention and she bought ten pounds of cocoa bean for the palace. She was a sucker for chocolate. The friends stayed out the whole morning and into the afternoon, shopping and taking in the sun's rays. After their shopping trip they took a walk through the plains, switching out the palace guards for Cosima and Ares.
Andres crawled through the grass, smashing flowers between his chubby hands. Andromeda and Iola were leisurely strolling behind him.
Andromeda let out a fond sigh, "Iola, I want a baby."
Her friend laughed in reply, "Are you sure? You would lose your slim figure."
"I could not care less about my figure; I would be bringing life into the world." The princess stated, longing gazing down at her stomach.
"Who would the father of this supposed child be?" Iola inquired before raising a brow, "Perseus?"
Andromeda's face flushed but she nodded nonetheless, smiling to herself. "Our child would be beautiful. My skin and hair with his eyes."
"Careful, you are starting to sound like your mother." Cosima commented from behind them.
"There is nothing wrong for wanting a beautiful child and husband." Iola told Andromeda with a smile. "Especially with one as handsome as Sir Perseus."
The princess returned her friends smile but said nothing more, instead looking to the sky. They were a little farther in their walk when Andres suddenly crawled into a field of tall sunflowers. Andromeda went into the flowers after the baby, calling her nephew's name. She walked all the way through the tall flowers until she was on the other side, smiling in relief when she saw the baby sitting in the grass.
"Andres," She cooed, bending down to pick him up, "You had auntie so worri-! What is that?" The beauty held her nephew and squinted her eyes, seeing something in his hands. It was a doll. "Where did you get that?" Andres just giggled in reply, holding his new toy close to him.
Andromeda walked through the flowers once more, handing Iola her child once she saw them again. "Where did he get this doll from?" Iola asked, furrowing her brows. Andromeda just shrugged, though Cosima and Ares eyes widened slightly at the toy.
"Princess," Ares spoke, his dark eyes searching the horizon behind her, "Why don't we return to the palace?"
Andromeda nodded and the group proceeded to walk back to the large castle. By the time they arrived at the palace the sun was setting and the fireflies had started to began their light show. Iola bid her royal friend farewell, saying that she would see her at dinner, and Andromeda had begun the walk to her chambers.
Her walk was interrupted by a tap on her right shoulder. She turned her head and found nothing, so she turned to the left and instantly smiled. "Hello Perseus."
"Good evening, Meda." The warrior greeted, walking in step with the beauty. "How was your day?"
"Wonderful." Andromeda breathed, clapping her hands together. "Iola and I went shopping then we went for a stroll in the plains."
"That does sound wonderful." Perseus nodded, lacing his fingers with hers, lovingly.
"What about you?" The princess retorted, raising a slender brow, "Where were you all day?"
Perseus smirked, his hazel eyes lighting up with amusement, "Did you miss me?"
"Never." Andromeda quickly replied with a smirk of her own.
The warrior laughed and squeezed her hand, "I had business to attend to."
"What could you possibly be doing?" Andromeda asked with a frown, "Is my father trying to trick you into being a general again?"
"No, no. Nothing like that." Perseus chuckled again, "Though your father could not 'trick' me into anything."
"He tricked you into loving me." The beauty quipped as she opened her bedroom door. Perseus slipped in behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, turning her around.
"No," He breathed, looking into her eyes. "That was you." Andromeda smiled prettily up at him and he pecked her on the nose.
"Oh yes," The princess whispered, twirling out of his arms and walking to her dresser, "I forgot."
Perseus opened his mouth to say something more but was interrupted by Cosima and a flurry of maids bursting through the door. "Time to get ready for dinner, Princess." The albino woman chimed, casting a glance at Perseus. The warrior subtly nodded and left the room.
Andromeda was undressed and placed in a bathtub, where heated water had already been bucketed in, and washed meticulously. Her bun was let down and her hair was combed through, before soap was massaged into it.
When the day was completely washed from her and she smelt of roses once more, she was dried off, wrapped in a robe and sat down at her vanity. She was made up to look like a goddess and her hair was braided back in an elegant updo. A white gown with gold lining was placed on her and golden sandals were put on her feet. Her crown was placed back on her head, along with two golden cuffs on her wrists and after a spritz of rose water, she was ready to go to dinner.
Andromeda walked with Cosima to the dining hall, her head held high and her lips pursed. She stopped in front of the large double doors and waited to be announced, fiddling with her necklace. When she heard her name and title through the doors, they opened wide, allowing her to float into the room. After the usual walk down the aisle, she took her seat next to her mother at the dining table.
King Cepheus stood from his seat, his loud voice booming, "People of Aethiopia, tonight is no ordinary feast." Chatter started at the dining table but the king quickly hushed his subjects. "For tonight is very special for my only child, Andromeda." The princess' head snapped to her father and her eyes widened in surprise. She glanced at her mother for answers, only for the queen to smile and look pointedly over her shoulder.
Andromeda turned her head and her brown eyes met hazel. As Perseus walked closer to her, the band in the hall began to play music. She slowly rose from her seat and faced him, her brows furrowed. The warrior stopped in front of the princess and got down on one knee, taking her hand in his and holding a golden ring.
"Andromeda," He started, looking up at her, "From the first time I laid eyes on you, I have loved you. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen and I would be honored if you would be my wife."
The bronzed beauty bit her lip and nodded hastily, a smile beginning to spread over her face. "Yes." She whispered, before speaking louder, "Yes!"
Perseus grinned and slid the ring on her finger, standing up and pressing his lips against Andromeda's. The room erupted in applause and cheers while they kissed. They pulled away and smiled brightly at each other. The rest of the dinner was spent as an Engagement Banquet. People gave remarks and brought gifts, Andromeda and Perseus were honored, and music was played. They were to be married a month from the day; the ceremony was already being planned by the Queen.
In the middle of the party, Perseus tugged on Andromeda's hand and the two of them sneaked away, heading to their secret place on the lawn. The couple laid on their backs and stared at the stars, their hands entwined.
Andromeda looked at her hand, marveling at the way the golden band echoed the swirling of a vine wrapping around her finger. It seemed as if the princess stared at her ring for a moment too long because the band appeared to move; it circled around her finger and began to tighten itself. The beauty's eyes widened and she watched the ring began to tint green.
"Meda?" Perseus' voice brought her out of her trance and she looked over to him; her ring returning back to normal. "Are you alright?"
Andromeda smiled widely, her white teeth brighter than the moon's glow, "Of course! We are getting married; I could not be happier, even if Zeus himself came down and asked me for my hand."
"Well let us hope that he does not get a glimpse of your beauty." Perseus replied with a smirk, his thumb brushing against her hand.
The princess giggled breathily, laying her head on her husband-to-be's shoulder. "I love you."
The warrior laid his head on hers and breathed back, "And I you, Andromeda." They were silent for a moment, just watching the stars as the heavens looked over them. Perseus opened his mouth to speak once more, his lips against Andromeda's forehead, "I promise that I will always protect you; I will never leave your side. I will never stray nor will my eye wander."
"Are you practicing your vows, love?" The princess teased and Perseus pulled away from her, tilting her chin up to look in her eyes.
"I promise that you will hear those words everyday from me." He paused, searching her eyes, "I mean it, Meda."
"I know you do." The beauty breathed, leaning up and pressing her lips against his. The warrior kissed her back quickly, the both of their lips easily moving against each other. Andromeda leaned back on the soft grass and Perseus carefully climbed on top of her, placing his hand on her waist.
That night, under the light of the moon and the glow of the stars; Andromeda was deflowered.