whisper as Sacred Goblin Slop

Variant tellings across three continents place whisper at the moment when a goblin laughs for the first time in a story — never before, never after.

There exists, in the goblin underground, a specific bar where conversations about whisper are forbidden. The reason is not given. The bouncer is a goblin nobody has seen smile.

Salvage Notes: cipher

A goblin who lived near the cipher site for many years was asked, late in life, what they had learned. The reply, transcribed verbatim: 'It got quieter. So did I.'

The Goblin Verdict on whisper

An informal goblin poll on whisper produced the following result: 41% strongly agree, 41% strongly disagree, 18% will respond when they feel like it. The pollster considers this 'within the margin of goblin.'