odd question - auto shift bulb not working but hearing a clicking sound

[nyvram]

so i have my center console apart because i upgraded the OBC lightbar to LEDs and replaced all the burned out bulbs. So far so good.

However, there is a tiny 2721 bulb that fits in a little socket on the actual shifter itself that lights up the PRNDS21 selection that does not work even after swapping it.

I know the bulb is good because it works when I test it in one of the HVAC sockets.

If I wiggle the 2 wires connected to the wiring harness with the bulb in i can hear/see some flickering/clicking over by the instrument cluster.

This makes me think there's a short or something but the bulb never lights up, just the clicking under the instrument panel.

My question; should I just forget trying to trace these wires back to the fusebox and maybe T off one of the HVAC lighting harnesses or something? I assume the shifter bulb only comes on when the lights are on so it seems safe to do that and maybe much easier than trying to chase this down to its source.

Would love any advice on how to get this working. I'm super OCD so its making me crazy that I cant get this light to work.

[superj]

if you cannot easily find the loose or broken connection, just run of the other wire you mentioned. they do come on at the same time.