,,,~~*=§¤@ @¤§=*~~,,,
,,~~*=§¤@# #@¤§=*~~,,
,~~*=§¤@## ##@¤§=*~~,
,,~~*=§¤@# #@¤§=*~~,,
,,,~~*=§¤@ @¤§=*~~,,,
,,,,~~*=§¤ **************************************** ¤§=*~~,,,,
,,,,,~~*=§ §=*~~,,,,,
,,,,,,~~*= 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) ,,,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,,,, ,,,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,,,~ **************************************** ~,,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,,~~ ~~,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,~~* *~~,,,,,,,
,,,,,,~~*= =*~~,,,,,,
,,,,,~~*=§ §=*~~,,,,,
,,,,~~*=§¤ ¤§=*~~,,,,