###§&$:=,¨ ¨,=:$&§###
#§§&$$:=,¨ ¨,=:$$&§§#
§&&:==¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨==:&&§
###§&$:=,¨ ¨,=:$&§###
§&$=¨¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨¨=$&§
###§&$:=,¨ :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: ¨,=:$&§###
#&$$:::=,¨ ¨,=:::$$&#
###§&$:=,¨ MOUSE GIRL LIKES SHOES ¨,=:$&§###
###§&$:=,¨ ¨,=:$&§###
###§&$:=,¨ : : : : ¨,=:$&§###
#&&::=,¨¨¨ ¨¨¨,=::&&#
###§&$:=,¨ IN THIS DREAM I WAS A GIRL OF MAYBE ¨,=:$&§###
#&:==,,,¨¨ 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 ¨,=:&§####
#§§&&$:=,¨ THE WINDOWS OF THE HIGHER FLOORS. ¨,=:$&&§§#
###§&$:=,¨ ¨,=:$&§###
###§&$:=,¨ SHE LAY DOWN IN A PATCH OF GRASS. I SAT ¨,=:$&§###
###§&$:=,¨ DOWN ON MY KNEES, AND THEN CRAWLED ¨,=:$&§###
###§&$:=,¨ CLOSER. SHE LAUGHED AT ME AGAIN, AND ¨,=:$&§###
###§&$:=,¨ SAID - ¨,=:$&§###
###§&$:=,¨ ¨,=:$&§###
§$$$=¨¨¨¨¨ : : : : ¨¨¨¨¨=$$$§
####&$:=,¨ ¨,=:$&####
###§&$:=,¨ (HERE I AM AWAKENED BY THE MORNING CREW) ¨,=:$&§###
###§&$:=,¨ ¨,=:$&§###
###§&$:=,¨ :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: ¨,=:$&§###
###§&$:=,¨ ¨,=:$&§###
###§&$:=,¨ ¨,=:$&§###
###§&$:=,¨ ¨,=:$&§###
§§&&&$:=,¨ ¨,=:$&&&§§
###§&$:=,¨ ¨,=:$&§###