Every Prince Deserves a Princess

"Because I goddamned ordered you to, that is why!" I bellowed, glaring down at the smaller, angered colt before me. Golden Sands stood inches away, his muzzle tilted nearly vertical to glare up into my eyes, his nose just about touching my own. I could feel the short, angered exhalation from his nostrils up against my face, and the sensation only served to anger me further. Ever since Cadenza's little interruption, I had been silent. I had been completely calm, cool, and perhaps, even somewhat satisfied as I walked into the office of the engineer before me. He offered me a hesitant greeting, and with that one, simple word, something inside of me simply snapped. Before I could stop myself, the shell of his smoke grenade was upon the ground, and subsequently crushed beneath my hoof. He began a tirade about expenses, time investment, and mocking him, but I wasn't listening. The only thing I could see in my mind's eye was her pregnant form, carrying the child of another stallion, as she trotted away from me, and the only thing I heard was 'I'm sorry'.

"I don't answer to you! You're a bully, and a posturing, entitled, arrogant..." his voice cracked, and the stallion, no, the colt began to tear up. Normally, earning tears from such a waste of life as him would have brought me great joy, but this time, I felt nothing at all but my previous anger. It was as though my chest was a tight, venom-filled membrane, and Golden Sands had stuck a needle into the surface with a simple 'hello'. The mission was the last thing on my mind, and I was prepared to keep pushing, simply to fuel my hatred even further. And so, I pushed. Literally.

Golden stumbled backward, his spindly legs seeming almost ready to snap as he tumbled to the floor and scraped his knee. His jaw was set in a hard line as he held his glare, trying not to cry over what I assumed was simply his broken gadget. The sight was quite honestly pathetic, which only served to spur me onward.

"Go ahead. Tell me exactly what you think of me, you little worm. Give me reason to break something else of yours. Give me your disrespect and bile, all of your tears, and limp back to that scrap-heap you call a workstation. You don't know what pain is," I snarled, as my heart wrenched within my chest. This bout of anger was unlike any tantrum I had ever thrown, and certainly not a normal case of lashing out. I hurt, deep within my chest, in a way that I couldn't explain with any other word but love. Cadenza's taunting had been too direct, like a dagger to the chest, tipped in slowly-acting poison that had just begun to take hold. In all honesty, I somewhat felt like crying myself as I watched the little piss worm burst into tears on the ground below.

"You're all the same. You're just another, you're not special!" he yelled, weakly hitting his hoof against the ground. "Every day, something like this happens, just because you can all get away with it! Just because I'm not big, or I'm too feminine, or I'm not working quickly enough for you! The only ones who have been kind to me since I arrived are Shining and Celestia, and she should be ashamed to have a nephew like you Why are you even here!?."

For once, the words of a lesser caused me to stop in my tracks. Auntie's words echoed through my mind, breaking the veil of hatred and bitterness that had clouded my vision. It took a fraction of a second for the shame to set in, as I remembered exactly why I was there- not to get into that cave, at the bottom of the lake, or make Golden squirm. I was there to push forward on the path toward getting my dues, and earning the recognition I deserved as a revered prince of Canterlot. That would mean dealing with imbeciles like the sniveling mess merely feet from my hooves, and keeping the nasty, but often true rumors about me to a minimum. I knew exactly what Celestia would have said, had she seen this outburst. She had always had a firm, businesslike tone that could make me cower when I had done something stupid. She had always preached that it took a big stallion to admit that he was wrong, and an even bigger stallion to cry.

I was wrong, and Golden Sands was crying.

"...I'm sorry."

Golden opened his mouth to fire back with another scathing retort, only to pause and sniffle before trying once again. "...what?"

"I said, I am sorry. Can you not even listen?" My brows were furrowed, and an angry expression swept across my features as I trotted over and offered him a hoof, feeling absolutely disgusted with myself. I had assumed I was humiliated from stooping so low as to apologize to anypony, let alone him. The truth, however, was something that I would never have admitted.

"No, you're not. You're going to slap my hoof away, or call me a faggot again, or break something else, or..."

"I will if you don't take the hoof. This is your one chance. You asked a question, now let me answer," I commanded. It dawned on me that my harsh tone was probably somewhat less than reassuring, and so I heaved a sigh before wiping a lock of mane from my forehead. "...please."

Silently, I stood, and he knelt, for minutes on end. Our eyes locked once again, both sets of blue hues stuck in harsh glares, though the emotions hiding behind each were entirely different than they had been mere minutes before. After quite some time, as my foreleg began to get sore, Golden grasped my hoof and pulled himself to stand.

"...why?"

"You've already asked a question," I snapped, avoiding the inquiry. "I came here to ask for your help with a very important project, sanctioned by Celestia herself."

"And why would I help someone like you, especially after what you just did? Putting on a facade to get what you want won't work with me," Golden sniffled out as he wiped his eyes.

"You doubt the sincerity of a prince?" I snarled. It was purely self-defense, a desperate attempt to save face, that clearly didn't work. I'd have doubted too, if our positions were reversed. It became annoyingly clear that my words would need to reflect what I was feeling and thinking, and so, I decided to take the plunge into pleasantness. It was almost physically painful to do so. "You said 'we are all the same.' Who is 'we'? You are bullied, often?"

Golden's expression softened the tiniest bit as his eyes searched mine, moving back and forth as he looked for an answer that simply wasn't mine to give. "...I am. Daily, for the reasons I'd mentioned previously. I know you think I should just grow a spine, but it hurts, after a while. Being called useless, weak, and the like isn't pleasant. I would appreciate it if you'd stop."

And I would appreciate it if you did, in fact, grow a spine, I thought to myself. Despite that, I merely snorted, and offered a curt nod. "Fine. I"m sorry to hear that you're pushed around. If it continues, find me, and I will discipline the offenders."

His eyes shined briefly with hope, though he seemed to be holding himself back. "If this is all a ploy to get what you want, I'm leaving this castle. I can't do it anymore. I can't keep living like the carpet you all wipe your hooves on."

"It isn't. I need your services, but I'm trying to improve upon my image. In order to do that, I suppose I must stop stomping upon my lessers." It felt good to reconcile with the colt, but speaking the exact truth as to why I was doing it did nothing for my mood. If anything, it sank just a bit farther downward than it had been before. Did I really sound so condescending, even in a rare, intimate moment such as that one?

"Your lessers. That's all we are, is it?" Golden picked up the crushed and mangled shell of his grenade, looking heartbroken. "Simple, unworthy ponies for you to step on, because we're weak? Poor? Not like you?"

I heaved another sigh, looking off to the side at a wall of ornate clocks. No two were the same, and the sight succeeded in holding my attention away from Golden as I took the time to mull over my answer. A certain earth pony's smirk came to mind as I tried to be as honest as I could, without earning even more ire.

"...not all of you, no. I would prefer it if you made the list of those I see as an equal."

"Then reimburse me for the grenade," he began, "and work on your social skills. You sound like you hate me, even now."

"In some ways, I do, but not as much as I hate myself right now." The words had slipped out before I had time to control my speech, and I simply left the statement hanging, for him to interpret as he preferred. I wouldn't be doing the same, as the decryption was not something I wanted, by any means.

Golden retreated behind his desk, pulling a sheet of parchment from some compartment beneath the long, polished surface. He remained silent for a good while, presumably thinking about what I had said as I did anything but.

"What is it that you need? Why come to me for it?"

"Because your work ethic and skill are obvious, and this needs to remain secret. The fewer ponies with knowledge of what is going on, the better." I approached the long table, my expression softening just a bit. "I need to breathe underwater."

"I don't know the bubble spell. You've got the wrong unicorn," he replied, as he began to put his paper away. I quickly put a hoof on the corner to stop him from doing so, resulting in a minor struggle.

"No. I need some sort of apparatus, one that an earth pony could wear about the face. Can fish not breathe water, somehow? There must be a way to recreate their lungs, or mouths, or whatever it is that they use to survive."

"...gills, Blueblood. They're called gills," he replied incredulously, looking at me as though I was the biggest moron on the face of the planet. I really should have paid attention in school, though my grades were bought and sold long before I showed up to the classroom. Why should I have tried, if others would take care of it for me anyway?

"Yes, those. Mechanical gills. Is it possible? Is there a device that exists that would allow myself, and one or two others, to dive a distance of at least forty feet without drowning?" I lifted my hoof from the paper, watching his puzzled expression with genuine interest.

"Does it exist? No. Can I build it?" He hesitated, thinking the situation over before a grin crept across his face. "I can find a way. Check back in a week, and I'll have something for you." Golden nodded with a confident smile, the tears long gone, despite the dried trails beneath his eyes. The look didn't suit him, though the smile did.

"I'll be checking back before then," I stated as I turned and headed for the door.

"Don't bother. It won't be ready." The statement was accompanied by quick scribbling as Golden began to draft out a design, or take notes, or whatever it was he did first. I merely shook my head as I continued my gait.

"I don't care. I'll be coming by to pay you for the ruined grenade, and I believe after all the shit I just gave you, I owe you a drink," I finished as I reached the open door. The sound of scribbling stopped completely, and I could feel his eyes upon my back.

"...I would like that. Thank you."

I looked back over my shoulder before exiting and hastily speaking in a low tone that I almost hoped he wouldn't hear. "You're welcome."

It was absolutely incredible to me how much two simple words could make me feel like a massive, pathetic tool.