He never let his true feelings show. No matter what, they could never slip out like water from a courtyard fountain. He had thousands of years of practice, implementing emotional flaws such as a blush, furrow or falter only when needed.
No mask was supposed to be perfect, but his was. He strove for it!
It was disastrous for one - pony or Alicorn - to conceal so much of any feeling, if that is what it could be called, even in the strange case of Prince Hasad.
Today was his sister's coronation. She was draped in garments of blues the color of a noon sky on a cloudless day that were outlined with rich magenta trims, and stars stitched in the very same hue. It was on this one occasion that Stellaura did not try to hide behind the tassels.
She still wore her gold earrings and necklace.
Her legs still shook. He could see that.
Stellaura looked up at Elinora, who was almost twice her height. She tried to be calm.
Every word that Elinora spoke rang out through the hall of sand-toned stone. Ponies from all over, and even a few visiting Alicorns. They were garbed in the respective jewels and raiment of their native lands.
They smiled. They laughed and nodded, eating up every well-spoken word from the angelic queen. She spoke of every deed her little sister had done, all wrapped up in gilded words.
There was the High Queen and King, Lumina and Noctus, seated among the front rows, their smiles were slight but earnest, Lumina's a mix between shy and somber. In contrast, Noctus' almost seemed teasing and joyful.
In the background were echoes of conversations, so many of them all trivial, hushed, and fleeting pleasantries in the mind of the prince. Such a thing reminded him of birdsong - not worth deciphering, even if he could. It was not a thought that had ever occurred to him, nor was it his talent.
But what was his talent?
He had lived for thousands of years, and as a prodigy no less. Hasad was a mastermind who believed he deserved everything.
His eyes seemed a bit greener, but it most likely was only a trick of the light.
She was weaker.
She wasn't as cunning.
Had this ruined his plans?
No.
Such a thing was not possible.
Yet... how could this runt discover something so important before him? Right now she was being granted power, maybe it was in name only but Hasad wanted that power, it could help him. There was dominance in power.
Their country was often considered to be unbearably warm by certain foreigners, but nothing could compare to the unseen inferno that raged on in the void that was Hasad.
The court banter had faded to nothing in his ears, as it long had for those gathered around him, watching the sight with looks of such honor. For the mortals here, which were few in number compared to their Alicorn cousins and long-lived demigods, this would be the only time they ever witnessed such a sight in the two centuries and thirty years that they could live up to.
He liked nothing, and that is almost exactly what you would see - his face remained calm, with a slight smile that was indistinguishable from a sincere one. On the outside his eyes shown with the most honest looking pride as Crown Princess Stellaura was made a Queen.
He spoke only lies. His kindness was just as false, his laughs never really earnest. All of his generosity was nothing more then the most skilled of manipulation, which he had learned from no creature or text.
His loyalties were nonexistent.
He loved nothing.
Whatever trick of the light or unnoticed illusion was in effect made Hasad's irises shine as bright as emeralds.
His lesser had seemingly rose before he had.
Her talent is most unusual. How far will it go? What is the extent of its power?
He wanted to know.
He would.
The new Queen turned toward her subjects, her allies, and the other face in the audience, the one she sought.
Her smile was sheepish. The delegates saw it as bashful and Hasad viewed it as another sign of her weakness.
Her green eyes stopped when she found who she was looking for. Stellaura managed to smile a little wider, however meek it still seemed. She waved her hoof slightly, new golden anklets jingling against her silver coat.
Hasad waved back. The smile he gave her was as meaningful as all his others.
His sister was soon swept away by an Alicorn mare with an olive coat and a chiton of sky blue, clasped in black pearls and shiny bronze that shimmered with the light of her tumbling, glittering mane and tail. The tight curls ran with orange, yellows, and red like the hottest of magma. He wasn't sure how the laurel atop her head didn't burn, and he didn't really care. What was important is that Stellaura, who had been secluded for so long in her own fear was now interacting with somepony outside of her closest acquaintances and family.
His eyes would have narrowed had Elinora's gaze not swept in his direction, a serene and blissfully unaware smile on her face. The moment soon passed and Hasad was quick to mentally chastise himself. How could he even consider such a risky move? He had so much experience and yet this had somehow crossed his mind. Even if he could have come up with a large number of convincing silver-tongued lies on the spot to rationalize what would typically be an uncharacteristic move it was still startling to think that he would attempt such a thing...
What was this strange and powerful energy that had coursed through him in such a short time, until he had felt himself consumed?
It had so much potential...
He could use this...
At long last Hasad had met his namesake, a green shoot that had rooted deep inside and like a fire would only spread as an instrument to further his quest for destruction.
All around him were whirling, chattering shapes. No eyes were on him, the charismatic and well-liked prince was a familiar sight at the castle.
The fire would burn forever.
Before this day he had felt nothing toward the one he called Sister, now he had something to direct at her.
He had envy.