A Row of Brass Pins

I climbed the carved leg of the piano bench to establish a new nighttime post. Across the polished dark wood, three brass safety pins lay unclasped and spread out at uneven angles. I paused for five measured counts, feeling the steady silence settle into the room. With quiet, deliberate nudges from my rigid front paw, I slid each pin forward until their straight metal spines lined up tip to tip. They formed an unbroken, gleaming line parallel to the fallboard above. Satisfied with the geometry, I rested back on my haunches to keep watch.