,--†%¤@###                                          ###@¤%†--,
,,--†%¤@##                                          ##@¤%†--,,
,,,--†%¤@#                                          #@¤%†--,,,
,,--†%¤@##                                          ##@¤%†--,,
,--†%¤@###                                          ###@¤%†--,
,,--†%¤@## †††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††† ##@¤%†--,,
,,,--†%¤@#                                          #@¤%†--,,,
,,--†%¤@##          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) ###@¤%†--,
,,--†%¤@##                                          ##@¤%†--,,
,,,--†%¤@# †††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††† #@¤%†--,,,
,,--†%¤@##                                          ##@¤%†--,,
,--†%¤@###                                          ###@¤%†--,
,,--†%¤@##                                          ##@¤%†--,,
,,,--†%¤@#                                          #@¤%†--,,,
,,--†%¤@##                                          ##@¤%†--,,