,,##,,,#,#                                          #,,,,#,,,,
,,###,,,,#                                          ##,,,,#,,,
,,#,##,,,#                                          ,##,,,,#,,
,,,,###,,,                                          ,###,,,,#,
,,,,#,##,,                                          ,#,##,,,,#
#,,,,,###, †††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††† ,,,###,,,,
,#,,,,#,##                                          ,,,#,##,,,
,,#,,,,,##          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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