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##£¤$*=~~¨ ======================================== ¨~~=*$¤£##
£$=~¨¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨¨~=$£
£$**=~¨¨¨¨ MOUSE GIRL LIKES SHOES ¨¨¨¨~=**$£
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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. ¨~~=*¤£###
#¤$$$*=~~¨ ¨~~=*$$$¤#
¤$$==~¨¨¨¨ = = = = ¨¨¨¨~==$$¤
##£¤$*=~~¨ ¨~~=*$¤£##
#¤¤*~~¨¨¨¨ 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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