A Ring of Pebble Shadows

My paws carried me through the garden gate and along the quiet noon sidewalk into the sundial courtyard. In the center of the stone terrace, a brass plate was set flat into the flagstones, encircled by twelve round bronze studs marking the hours. I paused, tilting forward to inspect the raised dots. The midday sun was high and crisp, casting tiny, crisp crescent shadows beneath each stud. With a polite nudge of my round snout, I rolled a fallen smooth pebble across the stone until it clicked into the empty space right beside the noon stud. It rested neat and snug, casting its own round shadow beside my front paws.