§¨¨§§¨¨§¨§ §§¨¨¨¨¨¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ §§¨¨¨¨¨§§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ §§¨¨¨¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ §§¨¨¨§§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ §§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ MOUSE GIRL LIKES SHOES §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ \ \ \ \ §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ IN THIS DREAM I WAS A GIRL OF MAYBE §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ SIXTEEN YEARS, TOGETHER WITH MY DAD IN ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ A HUGE BATH HOUSE / SPA / HOTEL / §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ SHOPPING CENTRE. DAD WAS CONSTATLY ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ POINTING OUT HOT GIRLS TO ME. "YOU SEE §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ THAT BLACK-HAIRED THING DISSAPEARING ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ BEHIND THE CLOTHES RACK? OOF!" HE'D §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ SAY. HE WAS ALWAYS VERY CREEPY ABOUT ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ THIS, GOING FOR GIRLS MY AGE. §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ THIS NIGHT HE HAD JUST TRIED TO WOO A §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ GIRL HE CALLED A "MOUSE" BY BUYING HER ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ SHOES, BUT SHE HAD ACCEPTED THEM ONLY §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ TO RUN AWAY IMMEDIATELY AFTERWARD. DAD ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ WAS A BIT BUMMED BUT DROPPED IT §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ QUICKLY. I SAID GOODNIGHT TO HIM AND ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ WENT LOOKING FOR THE MOUSE. §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ THE BUILDING WAS ENORMOUS AND MAZELIKE. §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ WALLS, FLOORS AND PILLARS WERE SET IN ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ GREEN MARBLE. THROUGHOUT THE HOUSE RAN §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ A MAIN BOULEVARD, WIDE AS A STREET, ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ FRAMED WITH CLAY VASES DARK AS OBSIDIAN §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ AND TALLER THAN A PERSON. IN EACH VASE ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ WAS PLACED UPRIGHT A LEAF FROM A PALM §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ TREE OR GIANT FERN. THE BOULEVARD WAS ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ DIMLY LIT, WHICH ALLOWED THE POOLS THAT §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ WERE GENEROUSLY SPRINKLED THROUGHOUT ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ EACH FLOOR WOULD REFLECT SUGGESTIVE §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ PATTERNS ON THE MARBLE. ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ \ \ \ \ ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ FOLLOWING THE BOULEVARD, TWO FLOORS UP ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ I FOUND HER CRYING BEHIND TWO FERN §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ VASES. SHE WAS BEAUTIFUL, AND AS I ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ APPROACHED, SHE LOOKED UP AND SNIVELED. §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ IN THE NEAREST VASE SHE HAD STUFFED ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ BOTH THE SHOES. §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ I TOLD HER TO FOLLOW, BUT SHE DIDN'T §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ MOVE OR SPEAK. SO INSTEAD I SAID TO ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ STAY THERE, AND RAN TO GET HER A BETTER §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ PAIR OF SHOES THAT SHE WOULD ACTUALLY ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ LIKE. WHEN I RETURNED, HAVING SPENT §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ MORE THAN I COULD REALLY AFFORD, SHE ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ WAS VISIBLY IMPRESSED. I TRIED TO SOUND §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ COOL, SAYING SOMETHING LIKE "WHAT DO ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ YOU THINK, JUST BECAUSE A GIRL HAS A §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ FREAKY DAD, SHE DOESN'T HAVE TASTE?" ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ BUT MOUSE GIRL JUST LAUGHED AT ME. §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ SHE THEN TOOK ME BY THE HAND AND LED ME §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ OUT A SIDE ROUTE TO A CLOSED-OFF ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ ROOFTOP WALKING GARDEN, FULL OF JUNIPER §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ AND THUJA. IT WAS A LATE EVENING, AND ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ THE STARS WERE GLITTERING. BEING §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ CLOSED, THE GARDEN HAD ITS LIGHT TURNED ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ OFF, BUT WE COULD STILL SEE OUR WAY §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ AROUND BY THE LIGHT SHINING DOWN FROM ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ THE WINDOWS OF THE HIGHER FLOORS. §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ SHE LAY DOWN IN A PATCH OF GRASS. I SAT §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ DOWN ON MY KNEES, AND THEN CRAWLED ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ CLOSER. SHE LAUGHED AT ME AGAIN, AND §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ SAID - ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ \ \ \ \ ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ (HERE I AM AWAKENED BY THE MORNING CREW) ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ §§¨§§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨¨§¨§ ¨§¨¨§¨§¨§¨
§¨§¨§¨§§¨§ §§¨§§¨§¨§¨