Chapter Text
The metallic corridors of the Astro Megaship always felt narrower whenever the crew returned from Earth. For Ashley, the transition from the sunny, open boardwalks of Angel Grove to the sterile, blue-tinted steel of the ship was always jarring. She stood in the crew quarters, folding a yellow beach towel.
"DECA" Ashley called out, looking up at the ceiling sensor. "Where is Andros?"
"Andros is currently on the Bridge, Ashley" DECA replied. "He has been reviewing transmissions from the Korova System for the past four hours. His heart rate is elevated by twelve percent above his baseline."
Ashley frowned slightly before closing her locker door. Then she walked out into the corridor and climbed the central gantry toward the Bridge. The heavy doors slid open to reveal Andros standing by the viewing port.
"You're doing that thing again" Ashley said while walked over.
Andros didn't turn around immediately, his eyes fixed on the swirling nebula outside. "What thing?"
"The thing where you try to carry the weight of the whole galaxy on your shoulders" she said, leaning her hip against the console next to him. "Talk to me. What did the High Council say?"
Andros sighed, finally turning to face her. "The High Council has finalized the reconstruction of the capital city. The colonists are returning from the hidden outposts. They... they want me to come home, Ashley."
"That’s amazing news!" Ashley’s eyes lit up with genuine joy. "You’ve been fighting to save your people for years. You should be celebrating."
He hesitated slightly before handing her a communicator. As Ashley took it, the crystal projected a holographic document into the air between them.
Her eyes widening as she scanned the formal document. "'By right of the First Lineage, the bloodline of the Great Architects must claim the seat...' "Ashley read aloud. “Andros, this is an official summons to a…coronation."
“A restauration, actually.... They are asking for their Prince back."
Ashley blinked, her smile faltering. "Their... Prince? As in, royalty?"
Andros winced.
"Technically."
"Technically?"
"KO-35 no longer has a functioning government."
"That is not helping your argument."
Andros groaned softly.
"I hid the title because the power Rangers fight for freedom, not crowns. But now, they need a symbol to unite them. They need me to take the throne."
Ashley stared at him, taking in the sharp jawline, the dignity he always carried, and the fierce loyalty that defined him. It suddenly made perfect sense.
"So you're telling me that while I thought I was dating a space ranger... I was actually dating a prince."
"Yes"
"Wow" she breathed. "I knew you were special, Andros. I just didn't know you were 'royal protocol' special."
Ashley shook her head.
"I need a minute."
"I understand."
"No, I mean literally."
"Stay there and don't reveal any other shocking secrets."
Andros obediently said nothing else.
Ashley paced.
Prince.
Actual prince.
This was insane.
After a minute she stopped.
"Okay. Continue."
"…My family ruled the initial colony expansion" Andros said, his voice dropping to a whisper. "We kept it hidden during the war because titles make you a target. Astronema... Karone and I... our bloodline holds the biometric keys to the planet’s core vaults. If I do not return to take the mantle, the colony will fall into a civil trade war before it even finishes rebuilding.”
“So you have to go back for the…..whatever core thing you mentioned.”
"Yes" Andros said, reaching out to take her hand. His grip was almost desperately tight. "But I cannot do it alone. The Council expects me to choose a mate from the high houses of the neighboring colony worlds to secure an alliance. They have already drawn up a list of suitors."
Ashley felt a sudden coldness in her chest. She tried to pull her hand back, but Andros held fast.
"I told them no " Andros said firmly. "I told them my heart belongs to a warrior of Earth. “
Ashley blinked, her mind momentarily scrambling to process the data. "Wait... what?"
“It changes nothing between us." Andros said quickly, reaching out to cup her face in his hands. "Unless you want it to. I cannot rule a world if you are not by my side, Ashley.
For several seconds she simply stared.
"I told them I would only return if you came with me" Andros continued, his voice completely steady, completely serious. He stepped closer, closing the distance between them until she had to tilt her head up to meet his gaze. "I told them that I intend to marry you, Ashley. That you will be my Princess."
The words seemed to hang in the air. Her brain, usually quick to react in the middle of a laser fight, completely short-circuited.
"Marry..." she whispered, her voice cracking slightly. She stared at him, her eyes wide, searching his face for any sign of a joke, any alien misunderstanding of Earth vocabulary. "Andros... are you... is this you asking me to marry you? Like, a proposal? Real marriage?"
"Yes" Andros said softly while his ears turned slightly red.
"I know it is sudden but when I take that throne, I am binding my soul to my people…and I cannot do that if my soul is already floating in the stars, searching for you. I need you by my side, Ashley. As my partner, as my wife. But you must understand what I am truly asking of you, Ashley. I am not just asking you to be my wife in a quiet house. I am asking you to take the throne with me. I am asking you to rule over thousands of lives, to make treaties, to command the planetary defense and guide broken people into a new age. I am asking you to be my equal partner in power."
Ashley froze, completely stunned
“But Earth is your home, and I will not force you into a life in another galaxy." Andros continued.
He glanced toward the stars.
"You would leave Earth... You would leave your family."
His voice grew quieter.
"Your friends."
Ashley swallowed.
"You would leave the life you've always known."
Neither spoke for a moment.
Finally, Ashley laughed nervously. "And become a princess"
Andros smiled faintly.
"A queen, eventually."
The sheer gravity of it slammed into her. She wasn't just being asked to go on another space mission; she was being asked to step into a completely different life, to rule a planet, to belong to him completely.
It wasn't just a marriage proposal. It was an alliance, a lifelong duty, a crown. He was asking an ordinary girl from a California suburb to stand before an ancient, advanced alien civilization and tell them how to live. To lead them through a reconstruction after a galactic apocalypse.
"To... rule?" she echoed. "Andros, I'm from Angel Grove. I used to worry about cheerleading practice and passing history exams. I don't know how to rule a planet! I don't know anything about planetary defense or... or alien politics!...I'm just a normal girl."
"You are definitely not."
"Yes, I am."
"You know how to fight for what is right" Andros said, his voice laced with absolute conviction. " You fought an empire, you helped save the universe. The High Council has spent centuries studying politics, and look where it left us: hiding in the dark. I do not need a politician beside me on the throne, Ashley. I need a leader. I need you. I will not take that crown alone. If you do not rule with me, then the throne stays empty."
The vulnerability in his eyes made her breath catch. He was giving her ultimate power, but more importantly, he was placing his entire future and the future of his homeworld entirely in her hands.
The shock in her chest slowly began to melt away, replaced by the fierce, unyielding energy of the Power Ranger she had become. She looked at Andros, the boy who had been so lonely, who had carried the universe on his back, and who was now asking her to share that burden.
"Wow" she breathed. "You really don't do anything half-way, do you, space boy?"
"Is that a rejection?" Andros asked, a tiny, nervous flicker in his dark eyes.
"No" Ashley said, her smile breaking through fully. She leaned in until her forehead rested against his tunic. "It’s a definitely, absolute 'yes'. We chased Dark Specter across the universe and fought psycho rangers. You think a little royal court is going to scare me off? Wherever you go, I go. Husband, Prince, or whatever."
Andros let out a breath he felt like he’d been holding for a century. He leaned down, pressing his lips to hers, the weight of the incoming political storm completely forgotten in the sanctuary of the Bridge.
"But seriously…" Ashley teased. "I think 'By the way, I'm royalty' should've come up at some point."
He actually smiled.
And seeing that, she smiled too.