,,,,:~^*%@ @%*^~:,,,,
,:^*%@¶@## ##@¶@%*^:,
,:~^*%@¶@# #@¶@%*^~:,
,:~^*%@¶@# #@¶@%*^~:,
,:~^*@¶@## ##@¶@*^~:,
,:~^*%@¶@# ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ #@¶@%*^~:,
,:~^*%@@## ##@@%*^~:,
,:~^*%@¶¶@ 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) #@¶@%*^~:,
,:~^*%@¶@# #@¶@%*^~:,
,:~^*%@¶@@ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ @@¶@%*^~:,
,,,::^*%@@ @@%*^::,,,
,:~~^^*@@¶ ¶@@*^^~~:,
,,,,,:^*@¶ ¶@*^:,,,,,
,:~^*%%@¶¶ ¶¶@%%*^~:,
,:~^*%@¶@# #@¶@%*^~:,