##@&¤$;~,¨ ¨,~;$¤&@##
##@&¤$;~,¨ ¨,~;$¤&@##
##@&¤$;~,¨ ¨,~;$¤&@##
#&$$~~,,¨¨ ¨¨,,~~$$&#
##@&¤$;~,¨ ¨,~;$¤&@##
#&$$~~¨¨¨¨ ;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; ¨¨¨¨~~$$&#
@&&¤¤$;~,¨ ¨,~;$¤¤&&@
@¤$~~~~¨¨¨ MOUSE GIRL LIKES SHOES ¨¨¨~~~~$¤@
&$$$~,¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨,~$$$&
&¤$;,¨¨¨¨¨ ; ; ; ; ¨¨¨¨¨,;$¤&
##@&¤$;~,¨ ¨,~;$¤&@##
##@&¤$;~,¨ IN THIS DREAM I WAS A GIRL OF MAYBE ¨,~;$¤&@##
##@&¤$;~,¨ SIXTEEN YEARS, TOGETHER WITH MY DAD IN ¨,~;$¤&@##
##@&¤$;~,¨ A HUGE BATH HOUSE / SPA / HOTEL / ¨,~;$¤&@##
@&$$;~,¨¨¨ SHOPPING CENTRE. DAD WAS CONSTATLY ¨¨¨,~;$$&@
#&¤$;;~~,¨ POINTING OUT HOT GIRLS TO ME. "YOU SEE ¨,~~;;$¤&#
&&&$$~,¨¨¨ THAT BLACK-HAIRED THING DISSAPEARING ¨¨¨,~$$&&&
@&$$$~¨¨¨¨ BEHIND THE CLOTHES RACK? OOF!" HE'D ¨¨¨¨~$$$&@
##@&¤$;~,¨ SAY. HE WAS ALWAYS VERY CREEPY ABOUT ¨,~;$¤&@##
##@&¤$;~,¨ THIS, GOING FOR GIRLS MY AGE. ¨,~;$¤&@##
##@&¤$;~,¨ ¨,~;$¤&@##
###&¤$;~,¨ THIS NIGHT HE HAD JUST TRIED TO WOO A ¨,~;$¤&###
@¤;;;~¨¨¨¨ 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 ¨,~;$$$¤&&
@@&&¤$;~,¨ OUT A SIDE ROUTE TO A CLOSED-OFF ¨,~;$¤&&@@
&$~,,,¨¨¨¨ ROOFTOP WALKING GARDEN, FULL OF JUNIPER ¨¨¨¨,,,~$&
##@&¤$;~,¨ AND THUJA. IT WAS A LATE EVENING, AND ¨,~;$¤&@##
@@@&¤$;~,¨ THE STARS WERE GLITTERING. BEING ¨,~;$¤&@@@
##@&¤$;~,¨ CLOSED, THE GARDEN HAD ITS LIGHT TURNED ¨,~;$¤&@##
##@&¤$;~,¨ OFF, BUT WE COULD STILL SEE OUR WAY ¨,~;$¤&@##
&¤$;;;,¨¨¨ AROUND BY THE LIGHT SHINING DOWN FROM ¨¨¨,;;;$¤&
@¤$~,¨¨¨¨¨ THE WINDOWS OF THE HIGHER FLOORS. ¨¨¨¨¨,~$¤@
@@&&¤$;~,¨ ¨,~;$¤&&@@
##@&¤$;~,¨ SHE LAY DOWN IN A PATCH OF GRASS. I SAT ¨,~;$¤&@##
@&¤$~,,,,¨ DOWN ON MY KNEES, AND THEN CRAWLED ¨,,,,~$¤&@
##@&¤$;~,¨ CLOSER. SHE LAUGHED AT ME AGAIN, AND ¨,~;$¤&@##
##@&¤$;~,¨ SAID - ¨,~;$¤&@##
&$;;,¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨,;;$&
##@&¤$;~,¨ ; ; ; ; ¨,~;$¤&@##
##@&¤$;~,¨ ¨,~;$¤&@##
@&$;~¨¨¨¨¨ (HERE I AM AWAKENED BY THE MORNING CREW) ¨¨¨¨¨~;$&@
##@&¤$;~,¨ ¨,~;$¤&@##
&$$~¨¨¨¨¨¨ ;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; ¨¨¨¨¨¨~$$&
##@&¤$;~,¨ ¨,~;$¤&@##
##@&¤$;~,¨ ¨,~;$¤&@##
##@&¤$;~,¨ ¨,~;$¤&@##
&¤$~~,,¨¨¨ ¨¨¨,,~~$¤&
##@&¤$;~,¨ ¨,~;$¤&@##