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"An thy father didn't keep us in such squalor, we could afford an edocharis," Setheris said, honing the razor briskly. Maia watched him in the mirror, hoping nastily he'd fumble it and slice his hand open. Or his forearm. But he was drunk, and it was sobriety that made him shake, not the drink. “But instead we’re left to rot alone here, no better than the marsh-country peasantry... no doubt his intent.”
Maia had never presumed to ascribe intent to Varenechibel IV. He had honestly assumed his father never thought about him at all.
He heard himself say; "An thou didst not spend all our money on metheglin, perhaps we could."
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(someone had to teach maia to shave; unfortunately, it was probably setheris) -
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“...forgive us for the presumption,” Edrehasivar said, tone slightly strangled in the way it always is when he doesn’t like what is coming out of his mouth. “But we thought, if we... that is, if we, er… attended... then you would not have to… no one would have to…" He sagged under our stares. “...stay behind,” he finished feebly.
We were at that moment visited by a terrible, inevitable vision of the Ethuverazhid Zhas cornered by our mother, and we confess we had to lean on the wall in a brief violation of Alchenar IX.I.VI. Even the edocharei seemed taken aback; even Cala. Edrehasivar looked horribly dismayed at this non-reaction, and immediately started to backtrack.
"We do not wish to inflict ourself," he said wretchedly. "It was only a— a thought…" He trailed off, but the pause persisted. In it, we reflected to ourself that while we had taken knives for this boy, and would willingly take plenty more, he had — indeed, has — a talent for making us want to scream in dismay.
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the alcethmeret's annual springnight gala goes... interestingly.
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god's a different sword by astardanced
Fandoms: The Goblin Emperor Series - Katherine Addison
12 Apr 2026
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“You have it in your head that by taking yourself to the Alcethmeret, you are doing the emperor some great piece of… charity, loyalty, fidelity, we know not what,” the Dowager Marchioness had said to her. “Divest yourself of this notion. It achieves none of these things. What it achieves, is giving you nowhere to run when you put a foot wrong— which will happen, mark us on that point. The only way this foolish play can possibly work for you is if you are lucky. Pray do you think yourself lucky, Csethiro Ceredin?”
The fact was she did not, and indeed never had since she had been fifteen or sixteen— but she had not found the humility to say as much to her grandmother.
Series
- Part 2 of csethiro zhasan
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The Ceth'University Anthology of Ethuverazhin Literature by astardanced
Fandoms: The Goblin Emperor Series - Katherine Addison
24 Feb 2026
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Volume I of the Ceth'University Anthology Series covers a selection of literature relevant to the cultural scene of the Edreveise Revival period (1596 AEC - 1654 AEC), including historical and traditional wonder-tales, extracts from the epic poetry of Frechelar and from the novels of Halsiro Cennavin ('Goëlar'), and parts of playscripts and operatic librettos. Now updated for the 1855 AEC edition, with additional contextual glosses and footnotes.
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as far as I could get by astardanced
Fandoms: The Goblin Emperor Series - Katherine Addison
05 Feb 2026
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She had let go of everything else; hope of a retrieval, hope of an apology, hope of seeing her sisters or her son again. It would be enough to know. She did not have to do anything with the knowledge. Ulis would understand. Surely he would.
"To the best of your knowledge, Othala— is the Archduke Maia alive and safe?”
Thara Celehar stared at her for a very long moment, his grip on her trembling fingers very firm. Then he said;
“Sister— he is.”
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In a Thu-Tetar nunnery, the Dach'othalo asks a Sister of Ulis: Did you enter this place as Chenelo Drazharan? -
child, how would we know? by astardanced
Fandoms: The Goblin Emperor Series - Katherine Addison
22 Jan 2026
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“So,” he said, “You are to be our grandson’s wife.”
“An it pleases His Serenity and our father,” said Csethiro Ceredin. Her voice was deeper than he had expected, and she seemed to have to work to keep it from carrying.
“And how does it please Csethiro Ceredin, pray?” said Maru.
“As well as it pleases any lady chosen to be Zhasan, we have no doubt,” said Csethiro coolly.
Saying that to Chenelo Sevraseched’s father was either stupid or deliberately brassy, and Maru had already ruled out the likelihood of her being stupid. -
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Maia allowed himself one glance, which gave him a good view of, rather than Ciris’s expensive wallpaper, the determinedly neutral expressions of the emperor, Vedero, and Nazhira. They knew how thou wast living, he realised. They all knew. The emperor had said, we confess we know little of the circumstance, but there was a lot that one could contrive not to know if one was willing to put the effort in.
“Thou’rt a Drazhadeise Archduke now,” Ciris said, with every appearance of a man sharing some sort of generous nicety. He clapped him on the shoulder with slightly excessive force, and beamed. “Shouldst try to enjoy it! Eh?”
There was not, Maia found, a lot that one could say in response to that.Series
- Part 2 of why we build the wall
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Selected Letters of Csethiro Zhasan by astardanced
Fandoms: The Goblin Emperor Series - Katherine Addison
25 Nov 2025
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A great number of Edreveise Revival historians owe a mighty debt indeed to the prolific correspondence of one woman: Csethiro Zhasan, wife of Edrehasivar VII Zhas. The 316th empress of the Ethuveraz was a prolific letter-writer, and her letters to her most regular correspondents — her four sisters, Emiro, Hesiriän, Iru and Saleheio; her close friend and sister in law, Vedero Drazhin; her husband, Edrehasivar VII; and later, her three children — are some of the most prominent primary sources about the court and the Drazhada in the early Edreveise Revival period.
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don't tell 'em what you told me, don't even tell 'em that you know me by astardanced
Fandoms: The Goblin Emperor Series - Katherine Addison
02 Oct 2025
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It became, he realised quickly, pervasive. All the tiny things which had not been prepared when the Wisdom of Choharo had crashed had now finally trundled through the pipeline, almost a year on. The new coins fully entered circulation, which was protocol. Papers and documents were properly headed with the new imperial seal, which was protocol; Varenechibel's portrait in Beltanthiar IV’s atrium, the formal centrepoint of court, was replaced with Edrehasivar’s, which was protocol. It did not take Setheris a long look to know it was a petulantly good likeness, devoid of all the tiny vanities his predecessors had snuck in; although Setheris was convinced it was painted so the pallid eyes followed you.
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extraordinary machine by astardanced
Fandoms: The Goblin Emperor Series - Katherine Addison
28 Aug 2025
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“Dear Maia,” said Csethiro, amused. “Lack of presumption, thy name is Edrehasivar. Well, we are sorry for the faux pas. Have no fear, we are used to keeping quiet on the matter.” She frowned. “Gosh. For a woman who was so worried you disliked us, we are certainly giving you plenty of reasons, in our attempts to diffuse the situation. Damnation.” She sat back, then said, “Ooh, Goëlar,” and sat forwards again. “You have the set! And well-read, we dare say, how impressive…”
The woman's mind was like a scanning bird of prey, Csevet thought exhaustedly as she tottered out of the chair to look at his bookshelf. Pinned one topic and only let it go when it was in its death throes, then leapt instantly off to murder another.(csevet and csethiro have three main things in common: pakh'palar, popular literature, and purpose. not necessarily in that order.)
Series
- Part 1 of csethiro zhasan
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all your sisters wanna fly by astardanced
Fandoms: The Goblin Emperor Series - Katherine Addison
18 Jun 2025
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To his Imperial Serenity Edrehasivar VII, greetings,
Should it please your Serenity to be informed— as your Serenity has always shown a generous interest in the wellbeing of the Ceredada— our wife the Marchioness Ceredaran was safely delivered of a son at eleven minutes past four this morning. The Marchioness and her child are both well; House Ceredada greatly welcomes the news of an heir at last and celebrates it in earnest.
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an heir for the ceredada, at long last.Series
- Part 2 of the sisters ceredin
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secrets from a girl (who's seen it all) by astardanced
Fandoms: The Goblin Emperor Series - Katherine Addison
03 Jun 2025
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“These are hundreds of years old,” gritted out Csethiro, digging the third brooch (Item: brooch, diamond and emerald, six pc. each, set in silver, Edrevechelar VI to Parmeno Zhasan) out of Csoru’s drawer. “And they are in with thy garters.”
“I am history too, thou punctilious academic,” said Csoru. “Csoru Zhasan, best looking wife of Varenechibel the Fourth—”
“Thou’rt barely a footnote,” snapped Csethiro.
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the handover of the zhasan'mura goes about as well as one would expect. -
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“Aha!” Csethiro sat up, displacing him somewhat abruptly. “Thou dost admit it, then!”
“Admit what?” said Maia bewilderedly, trying to sit up—
“That ‘tis my job to hate people on thy behalf,” said Csethiro magnificently, with a rather intense look in her eye that Maia did not entirely trust, even if he did rather like it.
“I did not… quite say that…”
“Let me deal with Mer Abrevar, husband,” said Csethiro— in a tone she obviously thought was measured, because she looked proud of herself. It was not measured. It was immense.Series
- Part 3 of csethiro zhasan
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why we build the wall by astardanced
Fandoms: The Goblin Emperor Series - Katherine Addison
29 Mar 2025
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He had been part of his father’s government since he was sixteen. He had seen more relegations than he had seen Winternight Balls. He just had not realised that his siblings did not understand it.
“But he wouldn’t,” said Ciris numbly. “Not— not us.”
“Yes, he would,” Nemolis said. “Ciris. He would.”Series
- Part 1 of why we build the wall
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"No doubt thou didst melt the seal open on the steam vents to read the business of thy betters, planned how thou wouldst ingratiate thyself with the Archduke— oh yes, we know thy tricks…”
Not the steam vents, thinks Csevet. It would wet the paper. The hot pipes, yes— but not the vents. He would only use a steam vent if he wanted to bleed the ink onto the external sheet and claim inclement weather, and that almost never can be gotten away with inside the court.
Captain Orthema is saying Lord Chavar, leave Mer Aisava, but Csevet knows Chavar will not move for love or money now, not until he has said his piece.
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Two attempts on the throne; and Csevet Aisava, in the shadows. -
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“Shaleän is an… awkward question for the Corat' Dav Arhos,” said Csevet slowly. “And we gather she is not much discussed in noble society… in public noble society, that is. But she is something of a folk figure to those who live on the coast, and they call her the arh’avar, the water-duke. She scandalises, to be sure— she has a wife stowed away in Solunee-over-the-Water, so it’s said— but many of the avarsin pay her huge sums to see their shipments safely across the Chadavean Sea, to smuggle valuables, or sometimes even to conduct raids on rivals’ ships. It has long been suspected that her father pays her great sums to feed him information and safeguard his ships. The Great Avar, we suspect, would not be as rich as he is without Shaleän Sevraseched. So her acknowledgement was generally considered to be long overdue, and we do agree with the Zhasan— we think he means efficiency, and personal investment, in his sending of her.”
(The Great Avar's definition of a 'trade negotiator' is possibly a little loose... so it's just as well that Shaleän is only sort of meant to be doing that.)
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Csethiro broke abruptly free of the pack and came sweeping towards him with hands outstretched, probably hoping to do damage control.
“Serenity,” she said, ignoring her father, who seemed to be wanting to prompt her like a conductor. “We are honoured to have you here.”
Maia had very little experience with the specific social mortifications of an embarrassing family— his own having simply chosen to forget he existed— and it wouldn’t have been fair to make a judgement, but there was already an undeniable tinge of the ridiculous to the entire affair.(Awkward dinners are part and parcel of the Emperor's role... but the Ceredada really are spectacularly embarrassing.)
Series
- Part 1 of the sisters ceredin
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and if you do, I'll know it's you by astardanced
Fandoms: The Locked Tomb Series | Gideon the Ninth Series - Tamsyn Muir
01 Nov 2024
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three other ways in which it did NOT happen... but harrowhark nonagesimus— and/or palamedes sextus— would probably have preferred it, if it had.
(first— a joust, a lady's favour, and a knighthood; second— a play, the holy roman emperor, and a sly matchmaking ploy; third— a social call, bonnets, and a card-party)
(or: tlt, after thomas malory, william shakespeare, and jane austen)
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remain nameless by astardanced
Fandoms: The Locked Tomb Series | Gideon the Ninth Series - Tamsyn Muir
28 Jul 2024
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The classical world, the plays of Shakespeare, the Bible, every piece of literature and culture ever made, have all been burned to shreds in the nuclear fallout, lost to everyone except John and his excellent poetic memory. Sometimes he thinks it’s like that crap film, the one where everyone but that one guy forgot about the Beatles. Except instead of the Beatles, it’s all of human culture, ever. The names, the references— they mean nothing to anyone except him. He feels a certain responsibility, for blowing up the entire cultural canon. A shred of guilt. A shard. Sorry, William. Sorry, Geoffrey. Especially sorry, Jane.
They exist only in his head, now, and in his friend’s names.
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(after the apocalypse, john resurrects and renames.) -
The Lancre Witches' Guide to Bein' Yourself by astardanced
Fandoms: Discworld - Terry Pratchett
22 Jun 2024
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“And here I was, forgetting my manners! What’s your name, my lad?”
Moist’s brain said: make something up.
Moist’s eyes made the mistake of glancing at Granny Weatherwax.
Moist’s mouth said, almost in fear of what would happen if it didn’t: “Moist Von Lipwig, Mrs Ogg.”
“Well, we mothers all make mistakes once in a while…”---
In Which Moist Von Lipwig Learns Self Possession - No Post On Octedays - Landing On Your Feet - Heart Attack and Homicide - The Havin’ Of Ways - The Cobblestone Rat-Mouse-Rabbit - Letters To The Afterlife - The Matter Of The Lead On The Opera House Roof