,:~;;;%%@¶ ¶@%%;;;~:,
,:~;%@¶@## ##@¶@%;~:,
,,,,:;@#¶¶ ¶¶#@;:,,,,
,:~;%@#¶¶¶ ¶¶¶#@%;~:,
,:~;%@#¶@# #@¶#@%;~:,
,,,,~;%%@# ;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; #@%%;~,,,,
,,,,,:~%@# #@%~:,,,,,
,:~;%@#¶@@ 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) #@¶#@%;~:,
,:~;%@#¶@# #@¶#@%;~:,
,:~;%@#¶@@ ;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; @@¶#@%;~:,
,,::~;;;@¶ ¶@;;;~::,,
,,,,,:;;@¶ ¶@;;:,,,,,
,,,::;%#¶¶ ¶¶#%;::,,,
,:~;%@###@ @###@%;~:,
,:~;%@#¶@# #@¶#@%;~:,