@&¤$$-¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨-$$¤&@
##@&¤$\-:¨ ¨:-\$¤&@##
&¤¤¤\\\-:¨ ¨:-\\\¤¤¤&
&¤$-:¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨:-$¤&
##@&¤$\-:¨ ¨:-\$¤&@##
##@&¤$\-:¨ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ ¨:-\$¤&@##
&$$\-¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨-\$$&
##@&¤$\-:¨ MOUSE GIRL LIKES SHOES ¨:-\$¤&@##
#@&¤$$\-:¨ ¨:-\$$¤&@#
##@&¤$\-:¨ \ \ \ \ ¨:-\$¤&@##
##@&¤$\-:¨ ¨:-\$¤&@##
@¤$\\-¨¨¨¨ IN THIS DREAM I WAS A GIRL OF MAYBE ¨¨¨¨-\\$¤@
##@&¤$\-:¨ SIXTEEN YEARS, TOGETHER WITH MY DAD IN ¨:-\$¤&@##
###@¤$\-:¨ 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 - ¨¨¨¨:-$$¤@
@@¤¤\\:¨¨¨ ¨¨¨:\\¤¤@@
@@¤$$$\-:¨ \ \ \ \ ¨:-\$$$¤@@
@@¤\\-:¨¨¨ ¨¨¨:-\\¤@@
&&$\:::¨¨¨ (HERE I AM AWAKENED BY THE MORNING CREW) ¨¨¨:::\$&&
#&$\-:¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨:-\$&#
@@@&¤$\-:¨ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ ¨:-\$¤&@@@
##@&¤$\-:¨ ¨:-\$¤&@##
##@&¤$\-:¨ ¨:-\$¤&@##
###@&¤$\:¨ ¨:\$¤&@###
#@@&¤$\-:¨ ¨:-\$¤&@@#
@¤$\\:¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨:\\$¤@