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labyfic2021-09-03 05:31 am
jalenstrix) wrote in labyfic2021-09-03 05:31 am
Entry tags:
Drabble #108: Surprise
...we had a bit more lively response to the drabble prompt of Drabble 107, with entries by
3iggy and me (your intrepid drabble proposer jalenstrix). For this prompt, we continue with our one-word/phrase drabble roots:
Surprise
Who's surprised? What's the surprise? Or at least, what's surprising? Tell us all about it. Labyfic-style, of course.
Given our entries from recent months, let's continue with the suggested limit for this month of 500 words. Though remember that shorter pieces are most definitely welcome!
Your entry should take the following format, posted as a comment on this entry:
Word count: # of words
Drabble: $your_beautiful_drabble
I'll aim to get the next drabble challenge out on the first Friday of next month (Oct 1).
I'm also very happy to take suggestions if something in particular strikes your fancy -- comment on this post or PM me with your suggestions. You can see our current collected suggestions here.
Remember: Feedback is LOVE. So do reply to your fellow labyficcers' drabbles if so inclined. (Though be careful of concrit unless specifically okayed by the author beforehand.)
no subject
Drabble:
My forehead rested against the cool marble of the table. “This is your mother’s doing. I know it.”
“Come now, you’re just feeling unsettled by the unexpected.” Jareth’s voice was that velvety coax he used constantly with Feanor, guaranteed to soothe. “Don’t be so quick to blame my mother.”
I raised my head from the table to glare at him before slumping back down. “She’s always going on about how she needs more grandchildren. And she’s been particularly smug lately.”
Dexterous fingers began to rub lightly down my neck. “Don’t you think it’s possible for triplets to occur naturally?”
I snorted. “Of course. But the probability is small. There’s no history of triplets in my family, and there sure as hell isn’t in yours.”
“We live in a realm of the improbable and impossible, Sarah love.”
I could hear the wicked smile in his voice. He was so pleased, the cocky bastard. I suppressed a growl. “Jareth, three babies at once? I mean, Feanor’s just…and there’s only one of him--“
“Shhhh, love.”
I shook my head. “And the pregnancy is no joke with three. I’ve been reading about—“
“Hush, love. It’s going to be alright.”
“You don’t know that!”
“I don’t. But I know you.” His fingers worked their way against the knots of my shoulders, smoothing and pressing just so. His voice ran along the sharp edges of my mind, softening and smoothing there too. “You’ve fought your way through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered so many times. Triplets is just the latest one.”
I sighed into his touch. “You do make a persuasive point. But we’re going to need really good doctors.”
“Trusty companions are part of any quest.”
“I mean, people who know about mortal triplet pregnancies. We can’t get away with Faerie midwives this time. And I don’t give a crap who we offend by turning them down.”
His breath was warm on my neck. “No quest is easy.”
I laughed softly into the table. “Have I told you today that I love you?”
“Maybe not today.”
“I really should. You’re the best Faerie husband ever.”
“Does that come with a prize?”
“It might. What did you have in mind?”
Teeth grazed the back of my neck, sending a zing down my spine. “Who knows how long we have until you’re not feeling up for adult adventures? We should carpe diem.”
“Especially while Feanor’s sleeping?”
“Most especially.”
no subject
no subject
Tuition
Drabble:
One of the disadvantages of being a human in the Underground was that while you looked like an adult, you were a child in comparison to the fae and it was endlessly frustrating for all concerned when they forgot that you didn’t have hundreds of years of history, education or context at your disposal to understand what was blindingly obvious to them. To make up for her shortfall in knowledge Sarah had embarked on a vastly compressed course of study.
While it was occasionally a research rabbithole in which she could happily lose herself, the history of the Underground and its races had been limited to a brief overview. She had been assured that she would have much more appreciation for the topic once she’d been immersed in the world for a few years, if not centuries.
Her favourite subject had so far proven to be magic, but it was also her most frustrating. Her tutors were confident that she would quickly catch up, but it was galling to be the sole adult in a classroom full of children who were so much more advanced. She was just happy they were such good sports about the situation, which may have had more to do with both her status and her ongoing bribery of the class with baked goods, than it did on their goodwill. She had been surprised at the amount of rote chantings and hand gestures until realising she was building up magical muscle memory. Jareth still looked at her oddly when she’d return from those classes muttering “Wax on, wax off,” under her breath. Her explanation of that slice of Above pop culture finally made sense to him once she applied it in the context of her physical self defence lessons.
Politics, particularly in how it related to the Goblin Kingdom, was proving fascinating, as were the details of the kingdom’s economy and its many trading partners. This was something that had parallels to what she was familiar with from Above. It may not have been the same kinds of trade items, but once you learned what was important as a product, the framework was fairly universal. The social aspect of it, however, was headache inducing and would likely only be of interest to a creature that thrived on gossip and intrigue. She wholeheartedly agreed with Jareth’s disdain of the topic and only tackled the subject in broad strokes to ensure that she didn’t accidentally create a major diplomatic incident.
With so much of her time dedicated to classes, Sarah liked to decompress by wandering the inner paths of the Labyrinth, enjoying the sensation of the innate magic of the structure flowing through her as she reflected on the day’s lessons and committed them to memory. As her outstretched fingers trailed along the walls and hedges of the structure, she smiled to herself at the gentle returning touch of the entity in her mind, not noticing the trail of glitter her own touch now left in its wake.
Re: Tuition
Re: Tuition