##¶£†*=:,, ,,:=*†£¶##
#¶£†*=:,,, ,,,:=*†£¶#
¶£†*=:,,,, ,,,,:=*†£¶
£†*=:,,,,, ,,,,,:=*†£
†*=:,,,,,, ,,,,,,:=*†
*=:,,,,,,, **************************************** ,,,,,,,:=*
=:,,,,,,,, ,,,,,,,,:=
:,,,,,,,,, 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) ,,:=*†£¶##
#¶£†*=:,,, ,,,:=*†£¶#
¶£†*=:,,,, **************************************** ,,,,:=*†£¶
£†*=:,,,,, ,,,,,:=*†£
†*=:,,,,,, ,,,,,,:=*†
*=:,,,,,,, ,,,,,,,:=*
=:,,,,,,,, ,,,,,,,,:=
:,,,,,,,,, ,,,,,,,,,: