§§**,¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨,**§§
££§$*»»»,¨ ¨,»»»*$§££
#@£§$§*»,¨ ¨,»*§$§£@#
£££§$§*»,¨ ¨,»*§$§£££
#@£§$§*»,¨ ¨,»*§$§£@#
#@£§$§*»,¨ **************************************** ¨,»*§$§£@#
£§§§$§*»,¨ ¨,»*§$§§§£
@@£§$§*»,¨ MOUSE GIRL LIKES SHOES ¨,»*§$§£@@
@@£§$§*»,¨ ¨,»*§$§£@@
#@£§$§*»,¨ * * * * ¨,»*§$§£@#
££§§$§*»,¨ ¨,»*§$§§££
§$*,,,¨¨¨¨ IN THIS DREAM I WAS A GIRL OF MAYBE ¨¨¨¨,,,*$§
£§$*,¨¨¨¨¨ SIXTEEN YEARS, TOGETHER WITH MY DAD IN ¨¨¨¨¨,*$§£
£$§»,¨¨¨¨¨ A HUGE BATH HOUSE / SPA / HOTEL / ¨¨¨¨¨,»§$£
@£§§»»,,¨¨ 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 ¨¨¨,,»§§§§
#@£§$§*»,¨ CLOSER. SHE LAUGHED AT ME AGAIN, AND ¨,»*§$§£@#
£§§§$§*»,¨ SAID - ¨,»*§$§§§£
#@£§$§*»,¨ ¨,»*§$§£@#
#@£§$§*»,¨ * * * * ¨,»*§$§£@#
#@£§$§*»,¨ ¨,»*§$§£@#
#@£§$§*»,¨ (HERE I AM AWAKENED BY THE MORNING CREW) ¨,»*§$§£@#
@£§$*,¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨,*$§£@
£§$****»,¨ **************************************** ¨,»****$§£
@§§$$§*»,¨ ¨,»*§$$§§@
££§$$§*»,¨ ¨,»*§$$§££
#@£§$§*»,¨ ¨,»*§$§£@#
£$$**»»»,¨ ¨,»»»**$$£
@£$$*»¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨»*$$£@