###¤&%:«,¨ ¨,«:%&¤###
####¤&%:«, ,«:%&¤####
###¤&%:«,¨ ¨,«:%&¤###
##¤&%:«,¨¨ ¨¨,«:%&¤##
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####¤&%:«, :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: ,«:%&¤####
###¤&%:«,¨ ¨,«:%&¤###
##¤&%:«,¨¨ MOUSE GIRL LIKES SHOES ¨¨,«:%&¤##
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####¤&%:«, : : : : ,«:%&¤####
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##¤&%:«,¨¨ 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. ¨,«:%&¤###
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###¤&%:«,¨ : : : : ¨,«:%&¤###
##¤&%:«,¨¨ ¨¨,«:%&¤##
###¤&%:«,¨ 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) ¨,«:%&¤###
####¤&%:«, ,«:%&¤####
###¤&%:«,¨ :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: ¨,«:%&¤###
##¤&%:«,¨¨ ¨¨,«:%&¤##
###¤&%:«,¨ ¨,«:%&¤###
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###¤&%:«,¨ ¨,«:%&¤###
##¤&%:«,¨¨ ¨¨,«:%&¤##