,,,,.;%%¶¶ ¶¶%%;.,,,,
,.~;=%@¶## ##¶@%=;~.,
,,,,,.;=%¶ ¶%=;.,,,,,
,.~;=%@¶## ##¶@%=;~.,
,,,,,.;%¶¶ ¶¶%;.,,,,,
,,..~~==@@ ;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; @@==~~..,,
,,,,,.;%@# #@%;.,,,,,
,.~;=%@¶## 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) ###¶@%=~.,
,,,,,.;%@# #@%;.,,,,,
,.~;=%@¶## ;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; ##¶@%=;~.,
,.~;=%@¶## ##¶@%=;~.,
,.~;=@¶### ###¶@=;~.,
,.~;=%@@@¶ ¶@@@%=;~.,
,.~;=%@¶## ##¶@%=;~.,
,,.~~~==@@ @@==~~~.,,