Chapter Text
Funny how one could look at a building every day for four years and never go to it.
Strands of red hair wrapped around Medusa’s wrist as she walked through the large arching entryway into the palace. It had become a comforting gesture when she had difficulty controlling the writhing of her hair due to some emotion. Now she threaded diamond-hard strands through her fingers. Four years. Four years since she had been here.
She had seen her cousins–Karnak and Triton–a handful of times over the years, and Gorgon, who wasn’t technically her cousin but she called cousin anyway, had come with his father to speak with her parents about agricultural development a lot. More often in the past few months. Every time one of her cousins came to see her, they would sneak her a letter.
Crystal, Medusa’s younger sister, tugged her hand. Bright, innocent eyes looked at her. “Medusa, why do you keep smoothing your skirt?”
Medusa glanced at where her floor-length hair swirled around her, straightening her appearance. Perhaps she wasn’t as calm as she thought she was. Jitters moved through her stomach and she quickly brought all her hair behind her and wove it into a complicated plait to keep it from giving away her emotion.
“Meduuuuuusssaaaaaaa…” Crystal’s nose wrinkled. “You want to see Blackagar don’t you? You want to hug and kiss him. Yuck!”
“That’s enough.” Medusa tried to make her voice authoritative, but Crystal only snickered. “Mom, make her stop!”
Ambur stepped between the two of them before the eight-year-old could say anything else. Medusa would have liked to say more but held herself back. They were in the palace now, and two familiar figures stood in the middle of the hall. Both Maximus and Karnak looked like they could barely contain their excitement. Though Karnak attempted to keep a stoic expression, his mouth kept twitching into a smile. When the family reached the two of them, they bowed towards them.
“Greetings, Amaquelin family,” Maximus greeted. “We are most happy to welcome you in this return to the palace for the joyous occasion of out Terrigenesis.”
“We are glad to be here,” her father, Quelin, returned with a head nodded in their direction. “We are glad to share in this occasion. May Terrigenesis bless you with gifts to serve Attilan best.”
“Thank you, Uncle,” that was Karnak. “We would like to escort you to your apartment now.”
Medusa hurried to fall into step beside him as he turned and started to walk. She nudged him in the side with her elbow. “You’re allowed to be excited, you know.”
“Oh, I’m very excited.” Karnak flashed her a grin. “But we have protocol to stick to. I’ll talk with you later.”
She squeezed his hand. Maximus glanced over, but didn’t say anything. Medusa fell back and walked with her family again. They were soon at their apartment, and Karnak and Maximus left to welcome in some other family.
Medusa looked around the apartment and grinned. Nothing had changed. Maybe that meant that everything would be the same as it had been when she had left four years ago. Well… perhaps a few things could have changed. It would be nice if Agon wasn’t as stuck-up as he used to be… She went to her room as Crystal started to question everything she saw. But then she’d only been four when she had been here before. She was too young to remember much.
Medusa’s room was exactly the same as she had left it. Perhaps a bit neater. But there were even the pictures of Garnit and Rubi, a famous couple who made dramas together. She had forgotten about how she had used to stay up all hours of the night so that she could stream their newest show as soon as it was released, and not have to wait for it to be shown on the dome.
After a few hours, Ambur and Quelin said that they were going to talk with the king and queen. Crystal went down for a nap—she hadn’t slept at all the previous night—and Medusa curled up in a comfortable chair in her room with a book. Shortly after, there was a knock on her door and she called for whoever it was to enter. Maximus slipped in, looking uncertain. He gave her a nervous smile and smoothed the front of his pleather vest.
“Hello, Maximus.” Medusa smiled warmly, though she still eyed him uncertainly. She had seen him even less than Karnak and Triton, and then it was usually on the dome with his family for special events. He had never brought her letters from Blackagar. “It’s been a while.”
“Yeah, it has. It’s good to see you. You look… beautiful.” A pink flush rose in his cheeks.
Medusa shrugged. Her long plait looped up and wrapped into a pile on the top of her head. “It’s funny, it’s been so long since I’ve been here and it would only take a couple hours to walk from the fields to here.”
“Yeah, but it wouldn’t be safe.” Maximus moved a little closer into the room. “I’m not supposed to know, but there are a lot of people who aren’t satisfied with what we’ve given them. There has been talk about refusing to work, even.”
His tone was utterly scandalized, and Medusa bit back the desire to tell him that was because they weren’t being treated right. Before they came, however, she had overheard Quelin begging Ambur not to cause trouble, and so she wasn’t going to cause trouble, either. Certainly not with the king’s son. She was eighteen years old now, and would likely be married by the end of the year. She needed to support the royal family, as was her duty as the future queen.
“A lot has changed in the past four years.” In the rare glimpses that she had of Blackagar on the dome, he looked more grown-up and handsome every passing year. She shook her head and smiled brightly. “There are rumors running around that the Genetic Council has chosen you a wife. Is there any truth to that?”
Maximus sat next to her on the bed, a scowl on his face now. “Yes. Well, maybe. There’s a girl that they’ve been forcing me to spend time with. I guess it’s necessary. I mean… I have to have children. But I’m only sixteen, they could wait a few years couldn’t they?”
Medusa had to laugh. After all, she and Blackagar had been betrothed since they were fourteen. Before the devastation of his Terrigenesis, the plan was that they’d be married as soon as they were eighteen. If it wasn’t for what had happened, chances were they would be married already. Perhaps even the day that she had turned eighteen.
It was awfully young—most people weren’t married until they were in their mid-twenties at least, or even older than that. The average age was actually in the forties somewhere. Young enough to produce a child, but not so young as to tempt them to have too many and overpopulate the city.
But her and Blackagar? Well, Agon wanted more royal babies. Or perhaps it was because Ambur was an Inhuman from Earth and so Medusa, as her daughter, would be able to introduce badly-needed new genetic material into Attilan. She was expected to have a lot of children… or at least, she had been until it was decided that Blackagar’s voice was too powerful, and they couldn’t risk passing those genes on.
So if things proceeded as they were at the moment, she would remain childless. Unless she took a man for her official lover. That was almost unheard of. Opposite-sex relationships were heavily discouraged; in fact, she could only think of two or three couples in the movies who were a man and a woman who actually loved each other.
Of course, she wanted her lover to be her husband. Unheard of. But that was how her parents had been and they loved each other. She wanted that.
“Medusa?” Maximus touched her hand. “What are you thinking about?”
She managed a smile. “Just wondering how likely it is that you’ll end up as king.”
“The Council is leaning towards making Blackagar king, no matter what Terrigenesis gives me.” Disappointment flitted over his face but he shrugged. “It’s probably for the best. It’s a lot of work and Blackagar has a better head for all that than I do.”
He didn’t look bitter about it, either. Medusa found herself relaxing. If this was four years ago, he’d launch into a tirade against Blackagar, as though he was born earlier than Maximus purely to spite him. It had seemed as though things had changed after all. She nudged his shoulder with her own.
“You know, there are other rumors I heard about you. And this one I got from a reliable source. Gorgon told me the last time he came for a visit.”
“Gorgon?” Maximus scratched his chin. “Uh… whatever it is, I’m sure it wasn’t true. Or exaggerated, at least. Gorgon doesn’t always think before he thinks—I mean speaks. So whatever he said—“
Medusa laughed. “He said that you have a boyfriend.”
Maximus’ face turned as red as her hair. A huge, goofy grin spread across his face and he leaned back, propping himself with his hands. It was a move that Medusa supposed was supposed to make him look suave but just looked awkward.
“Oh, that.” Maximus’ voice was brimming with excitement, though he tried not to show it. “Yeah. I do.”
“Who?”
“Gorgon didn’t tell you?”
Medusa prodded him hard in the side. “Spill!”
“Tibor.”
“Tibor?” Medusa’s brows rose. She had been forced to leave the palace because Tibor had been sent away. That had caused Maximus, who was developing a budding relationship with him, to have a temper tantrum and tell Agon about her secret meetings with Blackagar.
Maximus saw the question on her face. “His studies were only a year. He came back to the palace then. It was a year I needed to mature… We started dating about six months ago now. He’s so amazing.” His smile softened as his gaze turned dreamy. He sat like that for a moment before turning to her. “Speaking of maturity, I have to apologize for how I acted when we were kids. I was a little brat.”
Medusa couldn’t help but laugh at that.
“Okay, I was more than a brat. But I’m trying to be a better person. Not so petty and self-absorbed and stupid…”
Medusa took his hand and squeezed it. Four years and a boyfriend had to be enough for him to get over his silly little crush on her. He was still red with embarrassment, though, so she smiled at him. “Well, your apology is accepted. From what I’m seeing, you’re doing a good job at becoming a better person, Maximus. I’m impressed.”
“Good. I’m glad.” He let out a shaky breath. “So tonight we’re having a ball, and I’d like to give you something… Actually, it’s from Mother. Apparently, she was given it by the previous queen the year she was turned eighteen. She would have come here yourself, but she’s got meetings all day and she wanted you to wear it to the ball tonight. Attilan formal,” he added. “We’re not having any Earth fashions there tonight. Karnak wanted to, but we should be embracing our own traditions.”
Medusa wasn’t sure she saw why it had to be one or the other but nodded. She was going to have a great time there anyway. And, hopefully… she’d be able to have a dance with Blackagar. How much had he changed since they last saw each other? How much had she?