###&¤$*»^¨ ¨^»*$¤&###
#&¤*»»^^¨¨ ¨¨^^»»*¤&#
&&&&¤$*»^¨ ¨^»*$¤&&&&
&$»»^^¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨^^»»$&
###&¤$*»^¨ ¨^»*$¤&###
###&¤$*»^¨ **************************************** ¨^»*$¤&###
####&¤$»^¨ ¨^»$¤&####
###&¤$*»^¨ MOUSE GIRL LIKES SHOES ¨^»*$¤&###
&$$»»»¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨»»»$$&
###&¤$*»^¨ * * * * ¨^»*$¤&###
###&¤$*»^¨ ¨^»*$¤&###
####¤$*»^¨ IN THIS DREAM I WAS A GIRL OF MAYBE ¨^»*$¤####
###&¤$*»^¨ SIXTEEN YEARS, TOGETHER WITH MY DAD IN ¨^»*$¤&###
####¤$*»^¨ A HUGE BATH HOUSE / SPA / HOTEL / ¨^»*$¤####
###&¤$*»^¨ SHOPPING CENTRE. DAD WAS CONSTATLY ¨^»*$¤&###
#&&¤$*»»^¨ POINTING OUT HOT GIRLS TO ME. "YOU SEE ¨^»»*$¤&&#
###&¤$*»^¨ THAT BLACK-HAIRED THING DISSAPEARING ¨^»*$¤&###
###&¤$*»^¨ BEHIND THE CLOTHES RACK? OOF!" HE'D ¨^»*$¤&###
####¤$*»^¨ SAY. HE WAS ALWAYS VERY CREEPY ABOUT ¨^»*$¤####
###&¤$*»^¨ THIS, GOING FOR GIRLS MY AGE. ¨^»*$¤&###
###&¤$*»^¨ ¨^»*$¤&###
###&¤$*»^¨ THIS NIGHT HE HAD JUST TRIED TO WOO A ¨^»*$¤&###
#&¤$*^¨¨¨¨ GIRL HE CALLED A "MOUSE" BY BUYING HER ¨¨¨¨^*$¤&#
#&&¤$»¨¨¨¨ SHOES, BUT SHE HAD ACCEPTED THEM ONLY ¨¨¨¨»$¤&&#
###&¤$*»^¨ TO RUN AWAY IMMEDIATELY AFTERWARD. DAD ¨^»*$¤&###
&&¤*^^^^¨¨ 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 ¨^»»»»*¤&#
###&¤$*»^¨ SAID - ¨^»*$¤&###
&¤¤**»^^¨¨ ¨¨^^»**¤¤&
####¤$*»^¨ * * * * ¨^»*$¤####
#&¤¤$*»»^¨ ¨^»»*$¤¤&#
###&¤$*»^¨ (HERE I AM AWAKENED BY THE MORNING CREW) ¨^»*$¤&###
##¤¤$*^^¨¨ ¨¨^^*$¤¤##
###&¤$*»^¨ **************************************** ¨^»*$¤&###
###&¤$*»^¨ ¨^»*$¤&###
#¤¤¤¤$*»^¨ ¨^»*$¤¤¤¤#
##¤*^¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨^*¤##
##¤$***»^¨ ¨^»***$¤##
###&¤$*»^¨ ¨^»*$¤&###