.,«†*%@###                                          ###@%*†«,.
.....,«†%@                                          @%†«,.....
...,,«†*@¶                                          ¶@*†«,,...
....,,,†*@                                          @*†,,,....
.,«†*%@@¶¶                                          ¶¶@@%*†«,.
.«†*%@¶### †††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††† ###¶@%*†«.
....,«†*%¶                                          ¶%*†«,....
...«††%%%¶          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) ##¶@%*†«,.
.,«†**%%%@                                          @%%%**†«,.
....«««*%@ †††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††† @%*«««....
.,«†*%@¶¶#                                          #¶¶@%*†«,.
.,«†*%@¶##                                          ##¶@%*†«,.
.,«†*%@¶##                                          ##¶@%*†«,.
.,«†*%@¶##                                          ##¶@%*†«,.
.,«†*%@¶##                                          ##¶@%*†«,.