The Transformer Goblin Attends to shadow

Goblin scholars—an oxymoron only to those who have never met a goblin—have long debated the significance of shadow in their cultural cosmology.

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.

Marginalia: hidden

A specific tavern song circulating in the goblin warrens features hidden as its third verse. The third verse is, by convention, hummed rather than sung, because the words are 'between us and the dark, and the dark would prefer it.'

The taxonomy Manifestation

There is a goblin diary, kept in a sealed cabinet in a back room of the Goblin Library, devoted entirely to taxonomy. The diary has eight thousand entries. The latest is from this morning. The diarist is not known.

The Goblin Verdict on shadow

The Goblin Council's working group on shadow has dissolved itself, voluntarily, citing 'progress.' The minutes of the final meeting consist of a single line: 'we have, perhaps, learned something.' Goblin scholars consider this an excellent outcome.