....:~†*&§                                          §&*†~:....
.....:~†*&                                          &*†~:.....
......:~†*                                          *†~:......
.......:~†                                          †~:.......
........:~                                          ~:........
.........: †††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††† :.........
..........                                          ..........
..........          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) §&*†~:....
.....:~†*&                                          &*†~:.....
......:~†* †††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††† *†~:......
.......:~†                                          †~:.......
........:~                                          ~:........
.........:                                          :.........
..........                                          ..........
..........                                          ..........