&*%%%%\-^¨ ¨^-\%%%%*&
@&&**%\-^¨ ¨^-\%**&&@
&*%%%\--^¨ ¨^--\%%%*&
@*%\--¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨--\%*@
@@*\-^^¨¨¨ ¨¨¨^^-\*@@
@&*%\\^^¨¨ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ ¨¨^^\\%*&@
##@&*%\-^¨ ¨^-\%*&@##
&&**%---^¨ 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) ¨^-\%*&&&#
@&&&*%\-^¨ ¨^-\%*&&&@
##@&*%\-^¨ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ ¨^-\%*&@##
@@@&*%\-^¨ ¨^-\%*&@@@
&*\--¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨--\*&
##@&*%\-^¨ ¨^-\%*&@##
##@&*%\-^¨ ¨^-\%*&@##
##@&*%\-^¨ ¨^-\%*&@##