A Tower of Heavy Pages

I stepped quietly out from the knitted blanket and followed the cool wood toward the base of the bookshelf. There, leaning against the lowest shelf, was a thick hardcover book left open like an upright tent. I paused, watching the still shadows underneath its angled pages before cautiously pressing my front paws against the spine. The smooth paper let out a dry, fluttering sigh as the pages parted wider under my weight. Slipping just behind the tilted cover, I discovered a private, shaded tunnel smelling faintly of dried ink and pressed paper.