The Ballad of Adler Young, Canto 2.5

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*negotiations

Drat! Have to save all those "negation" jokes for some other time.

Pictures at https://www.patreon.com/posts/58840852 or https://adleryoung.tumblr.com

>Rebecca: As Burnside begins the tear through the gloves, inspiration hits you. What if you could artificially make clothes look more worn. More wear and tear added on, faded colors, rips and tears here and there. It's brilliant! If you make a shop to sell it all in you could call it "Cold Topic".
>Burnside: Hey! You helped with the idea so you get half the profits! You shout this between bites.

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"OOH!" Rebecca suddenly squealed. "I just had the best idea! I absolutely LOVE what you're doing with your ensemble, Raccoon Monster! Rags and tatters are SOOO witchy-chic! It just occurred to me, I could open a boutique that sells artificially aged clothing. Just imagine, stockings with holes already in them. Dresses that are faded and worn. Nobody's done it before! Everyone would be talking about it, and that already gives me an idea for the name: Cool Subject!"

"I helped come up with the idea, so I get half the profits," Burnside stopped rending her garments just long enough to declare.

>Vernier: Why is everyone so easily distracted...

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"Sir, I'm worried that your followers are so easily distracted," Vernier murmured.

>Adler: Tune them out, you're about to go into delicate negotiations.

"Shush!" I shushed her. "Go keep an eye on them while I talk to Ash. I'm about to go into some delicate negotiations and I need complete concentration."

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"So far, I can't give you a very good performance review," I stated into the mug. "Our original agreement was that you would supply me with information on this Zandar character, look for her, and spread stories of my deeds to help me build up a following. Instead of doing that, you blinded me to the outside world and helped run off the few followers I already had."

"That's not entirely fair," Ash protested. "I did in fact pursue the specified tasks. Unfortunately, your closing statement was very vague and open ended. You said you didn't want to know what I did. The phrasing made it seem like you were giving me leave to take whatever action I deemed necessary, and carry it out as I saw fit. You may not realize it yet, but the current situation you're in is very necessary for the both of us. Plus, I was not under any official obligation. There was no contract signed, no pact agreed upon, nor any oath sworn. As it stands, what I have been doing for you thus far has technically just been a few personal favors rather than anything official."

"Why are you so obsessed with contracts and oaths?" I sighed. "It's un-elfly, I tell you! An elf's word is his bond!"

"That certainly is true," Ash admitted. "But what word, exactly, was I bound by? You never made me promise anything."

"What about your sense of honor?" I blurted.

"Really, Your Highness," Ash replied icily after a short pause. "You knew from the start that I was Unseelie, yet you naively assumed I would do what you wanted without being compelled by any sort of binding oath or contract. You never actually told me not to betray you, so you can't really act surprised that I did. One thing you have absolutely got to learn if you ever hope to be Emperor is how to keep your allies on a short leash. Trust is a luxury that a monarch cannot afford. Never assume your friends have your best interests at heart. Always make sure that they do, and always eliminate any opportunity for treachery as soon as you can."