The shadow of the fence post moved faster than the post itself. Only by a fraction, but it moved first.

Rufus the rabbit noticed because he had been watching the ground, not the sky. He preferred the ground. The ground was dependable. The post remained upright. Its outline shifted slightly forward. Rufus froze. “That is not aligned.”

Cyril the shrew emerged from the grass. “What is not aligned?” Rufus pointed toward the fence post. The post stood where it always had. Its outline rested a small but definite distance ahead of it. Cyril stepped closer and examined the dirt. “It is a projection,” he said. “Projections follow.” “This one preceded,” Rufus replied.

Cyril looked at the angle of the sun. He looked at the post. Then he looked at the outline again. The outline trembled once. Then it held. Rufus took one careful hop forward. The outline took two. Rufus stopped. The outline stopped a half-beat later.

Cyril circled the base of the post, studying the light against the grain of the wood. “Light does not overtake structure.” Rufus lowered himself flat against the soil. “Authority has shifted,” he said quietly. “Perhaps temporarily,” Cyril replied.

A cloud passed across the sun. Both figures softened. The outline returned flush against the post. They waited. The cloud thinned. The outline resumed its expected position — though not precisely.

Rufus dug a small hole beside the post. Not for concealment, but for reference. Cyril inspected the depth. “Shallow.” “Comparative,” Rufus corrected. They observed in silence for a while. The post did not move. The light behaved normally. No further precedence occurred.

Rufus filled the hole again. He remained beside it briefly. Then he moved on. “We will continue observation until dusk,” Cyril said. “And then?” Rufus asked. “Then we will consult moonlight.”

Later, the Bureau entered a notation:

Precedence Drift — Light Division

Subclass: Temporary

No corrective action was authorized.

The fence post remained upright. Its outline remained compliant. For now.

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