Golden

Chapter Four: Castor

I stared up silently from my seat on the stones, gaping at the guy who had just introduced himself as Castor, the Second Prince. I gazed at him disbelievingly, and eventually rolled my eyes, shaking my head.

"No way,"I replied. He snorted and crossed his arms.

"Surprised? Of course you would be, realizing you were treating me with such disrespect,"Castor spoke, snarkily. He smirked. I frowned, suddenly angry. For some reason, that snarky smirk of his pissed me off. Who was he to smirk like that, and talk all high and mighty? Sure he was a prince, but shouldn't he at least be kind to his subjects? I mean, I'd heard both brothers of his were incredibly kind. And I'd just met his father, who was undoubtedly a friendly guy, even though his work drowns some of his manners out. That was understandable, I remember how father got before Kai became of age. It was sad to think Kai would eventually become just like that as well. I supposed that's how it was for every person who was to uphold a high-end job. Something difficult like that? Of course it would take a lot out of you. That's why Father and Geo both always told me how lucky I was, and how good it would be for me to finally get my match and get away before I was forced into a high-end position like that.

"Well excuse me for treating you like an equal instead of the prince you are. See normally some royalty would ENJOY being treated normal, at least at one point or another,"I replied, crossing my arms at him. His eyes flashed anger as he stared down at me. "Would you rather I got on my knees and kissed the floor beneath your feet? Because, I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but that's not the type of person I am. I don't worship anyone, no matter of status. You want my attention you have to earn it. Have fun with that, Spoiled Prince." He glared down at me silently. I felt like he was contemplating having me put to death, or thrown into prison. I bet he would do it, too, if I was any normal commoner. I turned my gaze away and stood from my spot, walking over to the black rose bush nearest to us. I picked a rose and examined it. Finally he let out a huff of air.

"Yeah? Well you're the Thousand Years Mermaid. Doesn't it piss you off when you're not treated like royalty? Your worth is greater than what is in our treasury,"Castor shot at me. I flinched and pricked my finger on a thorn. I hissed and pulled my finger up to examine it, spotting the small drop of blood forming on the pad of my pointer finger. I turned on my heel and glared at him.

"It's not my fault I was born with a golden tail. Why don't you try being caged up your entire life? You seem to have freedom, Prince Castor,"I retorted. I made sure to add extra venom when I said his title. Castor flinched back. A strange look crossed over his face before he looked away from me, his eyes softening. I suddenly felt guilty. I was connected to this guy, whether I liked it or not....my goal was always to make sure I was in love with my match, instead of being pissed off at whoever they were, just like I was acting now. I was losing my own morals. Besides...maybe he did appreciate being treated normally....but I had caught him off guard. That would be totally understandable. He just....if he didn't act like such an asshole, it would be easier to understand. I looked away from Castor and back to the rose in my hand. I crossed back to the stone of the fountain and sat back down, my hair falling over my shoulder and colliding with the black of the rose. They were almost a complete match in shade.

"You said you were moving in. Why?"Castor asked, breaking our momentary silence. I began picking the thorns off of the stem, careful not to prick myself again. Do I tell him? He'll probably deny being my match....I know I would I'd just yelled at me like that. Then again not many would pass up the opportunity to say that they're marrying the Thousand Years Mermaid. I don't know about this prince though. He's already spoiled enough. I dropped thorns on the ground and looked up from the rose. I gazed at Castor's face, feeling that his hair and eyes were prettier than my stupid golden scales. If I wanted, I could just melt into his gaze.... I mentally shook the thought away and made a rude face.