In the silence of the study dimly illuminated by the moon, a glass cup fell to the ground suddenly.
Alexus Smith had woken up with a start thinking he overslept, he looked at the clock near the window that allowed it to be seen by natural light. He had been asleep for twelve minutes, not an hour like he wanted to.
Sleep still at the corner of his eyes he considered heading to bed but knew that would finish him so he readjusted his position and went back to sleep on the hard desk. In his fading consciousness a howl penetrated the fog, he wanted to ignore it but he found himself standing up to face the problem.
He opened the door and came face to face with a wall but paid no mind or stopped but walked through it like he walked through air.
The hounds were scuffling over something, it wasn't rare but it bothered him that morning he stood in front of them menacingly not doing anything more, they got the message and the three whimpered back to their posts around the manor. He sighed and looked around, in the blueish shade of approaching dawn the grounds looked like a different dimension, he had never gone around the manor apart from daytime.
He breathed in the cool crisp air of the morning stained with the smell of mutts. He turned to leave but he felt his body stiffen, for a moment he considered that he had been put under a spell but it was all by his will, he turned and looked straight at it and compelled by an invisible force he picked up the shiny unknown.
It was made with platinum, branches spread out and coiled to cage inside a jewel, at the back he felt the pin and hook, the moon beautifully illuminated its unblemished and polished design. The jewel in its cage looked red but in the natural light he saw the hue move like a liquid. Alexus' heart picked up speed and he trembled, goose bumps breaking out across his skin and hair on end.
He intended to throw it away, as far as it was possible but he felt sure to hell and back it gained weight as if sensing his thoughts. He couldn't move and he shivered feeling colder than the cool of the morning, heartbeat pounding in his ears he couldn't take his eyes off the brooch.
A hand touched him, it broke his curse and he dropped the jewellery like it had burnt him. He blinked rapidly and only then could he see his surroundings and hear her call.