%/~....... .......~/%
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%/~....... .......~/%
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&%%/~..... .....~/%%&
#&%%/~.... //////////////////////////////////////// ....~/%%&#
##&%%/~... ...~/%%&##
###&%%/~.. 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) ...~/%%&##
#&%%/~.... ....~/%%&#
&%%/~..... //////////////////////////////////////// .....~/%%&
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