Ticking Box

My hooves launched me forward in a frantic scramble right toward the lowest shelf of the bookcase! There, tucked deep behind a row of heavy novels, rested a small round tin box with a little brass turn-key on its side! I bumped into it with a quick clack—and suddenly, tick-tick-tick! A tiny, frantic metallic ticking started echoing right inside the hollow metal! My jaw dropped wide open in frozen astonishment, ears pinned forward, waiting to see if the little box was about to explode with music or leap across the wooden shelf! It just kept ticking steadily in the quiet evening shadows, so I leaned my soft chest against the cool painted tin, feeling each tiny pulse bounce against my fluff.