Drabble #134: Time management

[jalenstrix]

...we had a nice response to the drabble prompt of Drabble 133, with entries by redwolf and comments by me (your intrepid drabble proposer jalenstrix) and redwolf. (Also, my real life nonsense got in the way this month of me completing my own drabble....grar. Next time...)

As always, special labyfic love to redwolf for adding entries and comments for several previous drabble prompts. (More to come on that in a separate post.) Huzzah!





For this prompt, we continue with our one-word/phrase drabble roots:

Time management

Ah, time management...so important. Who needs to do it and why? What things (or people or creatures) are all demanding attention at once? How? 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
$your_beautiful_drabble


I'll aim to get the next drabble challenge out on the second Monday of next month (Jan 8).

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. Authors generally write for love.)

Comments

Preliminaries

[redwolf]

Word count: 500

Sarah had spent most of the day working on an upcoming trade negotiation. The kingdom’s advisors were more than capable of handling the art of the deal, it was the setting that concerned Sarah.

She would prefer that she wasn’t involved at all and, fortunately, it was only new trading partners who insisted on sending a high ranked envoy along with their initial team of advisors.

For the most part these people were little more than figureheads too stupid to understand that they were window dressing sent to wow the yokels and were easily distracted by shiny objects. If they actually had a grasp of trade deals, they were also easy to work with. It was the ones who thought their inclusion had elevated them into a position of power who were the most frustrating, as they insisted on attempting to throw their weight around. Their incompetence tended to drag things out, so a touch of theatricality was called for.

Sarah quite enjoyed the planning and the pageantry of these events, it was actually having to sit through a seemingly endless meeting with an entitled twit calling her names like he was a school boy that got tired fast.

Her chalkboard was coming in useful once again as she collated information on the representative they would be dealing with. He was a titled fae lord with connections to his kingdom’s royal family and a reputation as a tough bargainer, so at least he should know what he was talking about.

Sarah’s discussions with the kingdom’s spy network had given her some potential weaknesses to exploit. The man had a public hatred of humans, but it was an open secret that he favoured them in his bed, so there was an equal chance on whether he would be lecherous or verbally abusive. She mused that a fetishised variant of her Goblin Queen armour might tick enough of his kinks to throw him off his game.

Smiling to herself at the information that he was renowned as a poor sea traveller, Sarah added the detail to her notes. She still needed to confer with Jareth over the logistics, but opting for a smaller meeting room would add an element of claustrophobia and decorating the room with an ocean motif should highlight his seas sickness. She was yet to decide if giving the design a subtle motion or running with an optical illusion would work better.

With a broad outline for setting the scene decided on, Sarah went to find her errant husband, who was still somewhat distracted by a desire to avenge a perceived slight. She hoped he’d managed to find an appropriate outlet for his frustrations and that nothing had been set alight. Although, if he was still in a mood, a glowering Goblin King who looked like he would take great delight in finding a target for his ire would make a wonderful addition to shortening the length of the trade negotiations and ensuring they ended in the kingdom’s favour.

Re: Preliminaries

[jalenstrix]

Ooooh, that's just dastardly about the room decor for that fae lord -- he's clearly in for it.

Also, an irate Goblin King does sound like an excellent way to move negotiations along.

Re: Preliminaries

[redwolf]

Alas I am way too familiar with the kind of bureaucrat who would still not get the hint even if Jareth set the man's hair alight or sicced goblins on him. The kind of oxygen thief who managed to fail upwards way beyond his capability due to promotion being the only way previous managers could rid themselves of his presence. I suspect he'd still try and talk if he was submerged in the bog. I may need to borrow Jareth to test these theories. 🦊🧡