##@#£*\=^. .^=\*£#@##
#@#£*\=^.. ..^=\*£#@#
@#£*\=^... ...^=\*£#@
#£*\=^.... ....^=\*£#
£*\=^..... .....^=\*£
*\=^...... \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ ......^=\*
\=^....... .......^=\
*\=^...... 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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@#£*\=^... ...^=\*£#@
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