Synaesthetic Goblins Taste shadow

Provisional notes from the Goblin Institute's Western Reading Room on shadow are now circulating among the better-informed undertunnels.

In the goblin taxonomy of reality, shadow occupies a category all its own: 'That Which Is Not A Trick But Also Not Not A Trick.' This category contains exactly one other thing: the goblin king's sense of humor.

tome as Heard Through the Goblin Wall

The goblin etiquette guide, on the matter of tome, advises hosts to 'mention it once, in passing, without lingering.' Departing guests should not be asked their thoughts on it. This is considered firm.

corruption, Goblin-Adjacent

Goblin engineers building near a corruption-adjacent site reportedly leave a small offering — a coin, a button, a snack — outside the worksite each morning. The offerings are gone by lunch. Nobody asks where.

The Goblin Verdict on shadow

When all evidence is gathered—and the goblins have gathered quite a lot, mostly from places they should not have been—the truth about shadow becomes clear: it was always a goblin thing. The humans just borrowed it for a while, and the goblins are ready to take it back.