Oh? What was this, then? The miserable little excuse for a goblin had been seen by the girl! The Goblin King was just about to shout into the goblin's mind, scare him half to hell and then summon him back to the throne room, when an idea hit.

Maybe it wasn't such a bad thing that the goblin had been seen. Maybe this was just the first step towards the outcome of all his watching and all his encouragement and protection for all of these years.

Maybe she would start to believe.

With this thought firmly in mind, the Goblin King leaned closer to the crystal, scrutinizing the girl's every glance, every move, every breath. Yes, the goblin had taken two more shirts, in addition to the other three. He hadn't been seen that time, but the Goblin King knew that the girl would not miss their disappearance. Oh! There was a flash of that stupid blue hair. Had she seen it that time? Had she seen? It was almost as if the Goblin King was playing a childish game of "I spy..." but he neither knew this nor cared.

It was rather stuffy in that factory, he mused, since the workers had long since resealed the windows he'd blown open before. The faces of the women working alongside the girl were sheened with sweat. He did not dare try the same trick with the windows again, so he merely moved a finger, almost a caress, and watched as the girl's hair lifted slightly in a barely noticeable breeze. But perhaps she would notice.

The lighting above her work area was barely adequate, as always. Again, the caressing gesture, and the lamp ceased flickering sporadically and began to cast down a steady glow. Again, not much. But again, perhaps she would notice.

He wished she would notice. He wanted her to notice. She should have noticed all the things he'd done for her by now... the little blessings that he scattered throughout her days. The little things that, put all together, said everything that he longed to whisper in her ear, but could not. Because of that irritating Common Sense of hers.

"Throw it away," he murmured, gazing at her through the crystal. "You know you want to. Believe, just for a second. Let go of all your mortal preconceptions, girl. Just believe."