A Shiny Discovery

I slipped out under the front gate to stretch my claws along the neighborhood sidewalk. The pavement felt rough and warm beneath my feet as I trotted toward the leafy shadows under a sprawling privet hedge. Near a cluster of fallen purple blossoms, something sparkled with a piercing flash of metal. I dropped low, raising my head warily, but sensed no threat of foe or prey. It was just a polished copper coin dropped by a passerby. Tucking my frills neatly against my neck, I gave the coin a gentle nudge with my snout, rolling it safely beneath a sheltering green leaf so it wouldn't be lost to the gutter.